about
A Painter Reborn Between Two Cultures
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Xuan Yongsheng’s art is a lifelong exploration of relationships between humanity and nature, peace and war, East and West. Working primarily with modern ink and oil painting, he constructs a unique visual philosophy in the space between “harmony within opposition” and “order within chaos.” His inspiration arises from a life spanning two worlds and two eras: from Shanghai to the countryside, from collective China to the individualism of the West. Through his brush, he records a spiritual journey of exile and return.
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Born in 1952 into an intellectual family in Shanghai, YongSheng secretly studied under the renowned sculptor Zhang Chongren during the Cultural Revolution, laying a solid foundation for his art.
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In 1969, he was sent to the countryside for “re-education through labor” but was soon assigned to the local cultural center as a printmaker, discovering in hardship the dignity and power of artistic creation.
In the 1980s, YongSheng continued his studies at the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts and contributed to several international art and literary publications.​
His 1986 solo exhibition at the Shanghai Art Museum and Beijing art collective drew the attention of Canadian playwright Ken Mitchell, whose friendship inspired YongSheng to move to Saskatchewan, Canada, marking the beginning of his “artistic life rebirth.”
In Canada, YongSheng combined the spiritual sensitivity of Chinese art with Western visual expression, illustrating children’s books for the North American market. His acclaimed work Ten Suns (based on a Chinese legend) was praised by Kirkus Reviews as “magical illustrations are as richly crafted and detailed as fine embroidery on Chinese silk.”
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As his work evolved, YongSheng turned inward reflecting on humanity and the world. From the noise of war to the tenderness of daily life, his paintings express the tension between reason and emotion, conflict and harmony, tradition and modernity. Calling himself “a translator of cultures” and “a spiritual wanderer,” he brings the stillness of Eastern ethos together with the freedom of Western light.
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In Xuan Yongsheng’s art, the world is no longer divided by boundaries, it becomes an ongoing, timeless conversation.