He was quick to perceive the subtle colonialism that undergirded the Chinese art world of the early 1990s.
[1] Zhou takes on the role of both artist and patron, as many of his airbrush paintings are rendered by assistants under his supervision.
[2] A typical process for Zhou Tiehai is to conceptualize a work, realize it on the computer, then rely upon the help of assistants to physically create it.
[4] In 2014, Zhou founded West Bund Art & Design and serve as Artistic Director.
For Zhou, the continuously uncertain and evolving status of art in Shanghai—conveyed by the provisional material nature of this collage—is rich with possibility.