Ding Yi 丁 乙

More than three decades after participating in the first major exhibition of Chinese art abroad, Ding Yi (@dingyiartstudio ) is making his solo debut in Venice at Fondazione Querini Stampalia (@fondazionequerinistampalia ). Titled “Cosmotechnics”—in reference to philosopher Yuk Hui’s notion that the universe and age-old value systems are shaped by technical dynamics of artmaking—the presentation traces the Shanghai-based artist’s visual language since the 1980s, gathering new and historic works that probe the generative logic of abstraction. Ahead of his show, associate editor Louis Lu sat down with the artist to discuss anti-monuments, cosmotechnics, and ancient spatiotemporal frameworks. Follow the link in bio to read the full interview on our website. IMAGES 1: Portrait of DING YI, 2018. Photo by Li Xiaoliang. Courtesy Ding Yi Studio, Shanghai. 2–5: Installation views of DING YI’s “Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi as a Planetary Code” at Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice, 2026. Copyright the artist. Photo by George Darrell. Courtesy Lisson Gallery and ShanghART Gallery. #DingYi #Venice #VeniceBiennale

‘Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi as a Planetary Code’ is now on view at Fondazione Querini Stampalia (@fondazionequerinistampalia ), coinciding with the opening of the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Since 1988, Ding Yi (@dingyiartstudio ) has painted a single motif: the cross. One of China’s foremost abstractionists, he has made this universal coordinate marker the basis of an evolving, rigorous practice spanning nearly four decades. Presented in dialogue with Carlo Scarpa’s architecture and garden, this exhibition brings together new and historic works alongside a series of stone steles, tracing the development of Ding Yi’s visual language within one of Venice’s most resonant spaces. The title draws on philosopher Yuk Hui’s concept of Cosmotechnics—the idea that technical activity can unite cosmic order with moral life. Here, the cross functions not as symbol but as algorithm: a repeatable micro-gesture that makes time, attention, and relationality visible. The works transform the Area Scarpa into a contemplative passage, their rhythm and accumulation evoking the meandering structure of a traditional Chinese garden. Curated by Alfredo Cramerotti (@curatorview ) and Auronda Scalera (@aurondascalera ). Presented by the Fondazione Querini Stampalia with the support of Lisson and ShanghART (@shanghartgallery ). 🗓️ 9 May – 22 November 2026 📍Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice, Italy 🔗 Explore at the link in bio. Image 1-2, 4-7, 9-10: Installation view of ‘Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi as a Planetary Code’, 9 May – 22 November 2026, Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice, Italy Image 3: ‘Appearance of Crosses Stele 2025-2’, 2025, detail Image 8: ‘Appearance of Crosses 2026-3’, 2026, detail Image 11-12: ‘Appearance of Crosses 2025-30’, 2026, detail #DingYi #LissonGallery #ShanghART #FondazioneQueriniStampalia #LaBiennalediVenezia

In this new profile, produced in collaboration with NOWNESS (@nowness ) on the eve of his solo exhibition, 'Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi’s Planetary Code,' Ding Yi reflects on a career spanning nearly four decades, the enduring legacy of his signature 'Appearance of Crosses' motif, and the fresh creative directions explored in his latest Venice presentation. Alongside a selection of seminal archival works, the artist debuts twelve new black-and-white paintings and two stone steles, marking his first foray into the concept of the "pictographic monument." "Steles carry the memory of time and history; they serve as vital coordinates in the construction of diverse civilizations, which I find deeply compelling," muses Ding. "The incisions in the woodcut paintings and the stone steles create a profound connection, evoking the visual dimension of a 'forest of steles.' By intercepting the 'central axis' of the gallery, these works interact with the flanking natural light to evoke a sense of deep, rhythmic breathing." 在个展“宇宙技艺：丁乙的行星代码”开幕前夕，丁乙与NOWNESS回顾了自己近四十载的职业生涯，他坚持至今的“十示”符号，及在此次威尼斯个展中的新尝试。 展览除了呈现一系列早期代表性作品外，丁乙还将展出十二件全新黑白画作，及两件石碑雕塑，也标志着艺术家首次在创作中融入“图像碑”的概念。 “石碑带着时间和历史的记忆，也是不同文明建设中重要的坐标，非常有意思。木刻绘画和石碑上的刻痕形成了某种连接，隐喻着“碑林”的这样的一个视觉维度。同时它也阻断着展厅的“中轴线”，通过两边的自然光，呈现某种深呼吸的状态。” 策展人 Curators: 阿尔弗雷多·克拉梅罗蒂 & 奥荣达·斯卡莱拉 Alfredo Cramerotti (@curatorview ) & Auronda Scalera (@aurondascalera ) 地点 Location: 奎里尼·斯坦帕利亚基金会, 威尼斯 @fondazionequerinistampalia , Venazia 展期 Duration: 2026/5/9 - 2026/11/22 @shanghartgallery @lisson_gallery #dingyi #nowness #venice #cosmotechnics

Since launching the “Power Lunch” series in our Hong Kong and Beijing offices several years ago, we’ve had the privilege of hosting leading regulators, entrepreneurs, and investors for candid, profound conversations. This time, we’re breaking new ground by welcoming our first artist. I’m thrilled to host a special conversation with Chinese abstract art pioneer Ding Yi (丁乙). The theme of the event, “Cross” Examination (“十问 ‘十示’”), plays on Ding Yi’s signature motif: the cross (“+” and “×”) that has defined his groundbreaking abstract work since the late 1980s, transforming simple geometric forms into vast explorations of structure, rationality, urban modernity, and beyond. As a lawyer, cross-examination is second nature in the courtroom. In the legal tradition, cross-examination serves as the most powerful engine for the discovery of truth—rigorously testing credibility, exposing inconsistencies, and seeking the facts beneath the surface. Together, we’ll cross boundaries — between art and law, East and West, tradition and innovation — in an open dialogue on cutting-edge topics: Chinese modernity, the impact of AI on creativity, the evolution of art in a rapidly changing world, and more. Excited to see where the conversation takes us. See you Wednesday. #DingYi #ChineseContemporaryArt #ArtAndLaw #AIandArt #abstract

Special cover with @artnews for Lantern Festival🏮 与Art news共创元宵节特别封面。 #chinesenewyear #lanternfestival #dingyi #cover #artnews

From 9 May 2026, to coincide with the opening of the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, one of China’s most prominent abstractionists, the Shanghai-based artist Ding Yi (@dingyiartstudio ), presents a major presentation ‘Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi as a Planetary Code’ at Fondazione Querini Stampalia (@fondazionequerinistampalia ). Curated by Alfredo Cramerotti (@curatorview ) and Auronda Scalera (@aurondascalera ), the exhibition brings together new and historic works that trace the evolution of Ding Yi’s language, alongside a series of stone steles that anchor the exhibition as a place of reflection and ritual, recalling ancient sites across China and Europe. Titled ‘Cosmotechnics’ – a concept borrowed from philosopher Yuk Hui – the presentation transforms the Area Scarpa into a contemplative forest of images, the works operating like a planetary code with their placement creating a meandering path reminiscent of traditional Chinese gardens. The exhibition is presented by the Fondazione Querini Stampalia with the support of Lisson Gallery and ShanghART Gallery (@shanghartgallery ). 🗓️ 9 May – 22 November 2026 📍Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice, Italy 🔗 Explore at the link in bio. Image 1–7: ‘Appearance of Crosses’ works for ‘Cosmotechnics: Ding Yi as a Planetary Code’ © Ding Yi. Courtesy Lisson Gallery and ShanghART Gallery Image 8: Installation view of ‘Ding Yi: Between Prediction and Retrospection’ by at Mostyn Gallery, 2025. Courtesy Mostyn Gallery Image 9: Installation view of ‘Ding Yi: The Winding Path’ at Contemporary Gallery Kunming, 2025. Courtesy Contemporary Gallery Kunming Image 10: Installation view of ‘Ding Yi: Between Prediction and Retrospection’ at Chaˆteau La Coste, 2024. Courtesy Chaˆteau La Coste #DingYi #LissonGallery #FondazioneQueriniStampalia #LaBiennalediVenezia #ShanghART_Gallery

From 1980 to 1983, while studying at the Shanghai Art and Craft Academy, Ding Yi was taught by Yu Youhan. From 1990 to 2005, he taught at the same academy, during which time he became Yu’s colleague. He said: “I’ve always felt that Teacher Yu is a ‘real artist’; he doesn’t need any laurels—that is simply his nature… In my mind, he is, in a certain sense, the last modernist in China.” “Echoes of the Wind: Remembering Yu Youhan” draws on the oral accounts of Yu Youhan’s closest friends, researchers, and fellow practitioners. Cutting through superficial commemoration, the book dialectically places an individual life—his artistic practice, intellectual inquiry, and historical encounters—within the complex and shifting historical structure of Chinese contemporary art. 1980至1983年，丁乙在就读上海市工艺美术学校期间曾受教于余友涵。1990至2005年，他任教于上海市工艺美术学校，期间成为余友涵的同事。他说：“我觉得余老师一直以来是一个“真正的艺术家”，他不需要什么桂冠，这是他的本性……在我心中，我觉得他某种意义上是中国最后一个现代主义者。” 《长乐未央：同时代人记忆中的余友涵》通过余友涵先生生前至交、研究者与同道者的口述，本书穿透了浮泛的纪念，将个体生命的轨迹——其艺术实践、思想探索与时代际遇——辩证地置入中国当代艺术复杂流变的历史结构之中。 #dingyi #yuyouhan #chinesecontemporaryart #artpublication #remembering

Works | Appearance of Crosses 1997-34-37, 1997. Acrylic on tartan, 260 x 320 cm ©Ding Yi, courtesy Ding Yi Art Studio Currently on view at “The Rambles of a Wandering Adaptist: ShanghART Thirty-Year Special Exhibition” on Shenzhen Free Sky Viewing Deck, on display through March 29, 2026. @shanghartgallery Since first experimenting in 1996 with ready-made tartan as a painting ground, Ding Yi has continued to adopt it as a primary medium—enacting “re-alterations” and “re-articulations” on found fabric so that the tartan’s very meaning and appearance are continuously transformed. His pictorial impulses and methods are closely linked to the color and structure of the tartan itself. This phase, in which he appropriates ready-made tartan for painting, also corresponds to his observation of the rise of consumer culture in China in the mid-1990s. “Appearance of Crosses 1997-34–37” borrows the format of the traditional Chinese four-panel screen. In that context, a four-panel set typically comprises four scrolls of equal size with intertextual content: each stands on its own while together they convey a complete artistic conception. Ding Yi reconstructs a contemporary expression of this traditional format by deploying abstract signs on tartan. In this work, the ground color and weave of the fabric form the basis of the image, upon which cross motifs are arranged with measured regularity. At first glance, the four panels seem scarcely different; only at close range do the details reveal pulsating, life-filled brushwork beneath the orderly surface. Subtle shifts in color from panel to panel further articulate each one’s quiet independence. 自1996年首次尝试使用成品格纹布作为画布后，丁乙便开始将其作为主要的创作媒介，在现成布料上实现“再改变”、“再表达”，使格纹布本身的意义和样貌不断更改。绘画灵感与方式与格纹布本身的色彩、结构相关。丁乙挪用格纹布这种现成品进行创作的这一阶段，也对应着他所观察到的20世纪90年代中期中国消费文化兴起的潮流。 《十示1997-34–37》借用了中国传统“四条屏”的形式。在传统语境中，四条屏通常由四幅尺寸相同、内容相互呼应的书画组成：它们既可独立成章，又能共同传达完整的意境。丁乙以抽象符号在格纹布上重构这一传统形式的当代表达。在这件作品中，画布本身的底色与纹理构成了画面的基底，十字符号均匀有序地排列其上。乍看之下，四个画面并无显著差别；唯有近距离观赏细节，方能察觉井然秩序之下那颤动而富有生命力的笔触；同时，不同画面之间色彩的细微变化，又在微妙地表达各自的独立性。 这件作品目前展出于深圳云际观光层“隙语浮步：香格纳三十周年特展”，展期至2026年3月29日。 #dingyi #abstract #shanghart #1997 #paintingontartan #shenzhen #appearanceofcrosses

Happy Holiday Season! 🎄🐎 #dingyi #happynewyears #merrychristmas2025 #2026

Extended | Ding Yi’s solo exhibition “Constellation” is now on view at Galerie Karsten Greve Paris @galeriekarstengreve until December 31st, 2025. For Ding Yi, the “cross” is no longer merely a symbol, but has been fully integrated and transformed into his distinctive pictorial language. This exhibition presents his recent Constellation series created on wood panels, canvas, and paper, highlighting the artist’s sensitivity to the expressive potential of diverse materials. Using media such as pencil, pastel, and acrylic, these works reveal textures and irregularities that infuse the compositions with a dynamic rhythm and a sense of mystery. 延期 | 丁乙个展”星座”此刻正在卡斯滕·格雷夫画廊巴黎空间@galeriekarstengreve 展出，展至2025年12月31日。 对丁乙而言，如今的“十字”已不再仅仅是一个符号，而是被融入并转化为他独特的绘画语言。本次展览呈现了艺术家近期在木板、布面与纸本上的“星座”系列作品，体现了他对多样材料的敏锐运用与探索。作品多使用铅笔、色粉、丙烯等媒介，其产生的肌理与不规则性，使画面更具动态的节奏与神秘的氛围。 Photo: Nicolas Brasseur #dingyi #karstengreveparis #contemporaryart #constellation #artexhibition2025

Welcome to our studio! We’re happy to host the 4th Shanghai Curators’ Lab and chat about art with emerging curators. 欢迎第四届上海策展人实验室学员参观丁乙工作室！很高兴与年轻的策展人们交流艺术。 #dingyo #curatorslab #curator #studiovisit #contemporaryart

The Winding Path: Crossing the Galaxy Cosmology and artistic expressions in Naxi traditional culture Speakers: Ding Yi, Mu Jlyuan, Yuan Changgeng Host: Zhang Haichao Venue: Anthropology Museum of Yunnan University Date: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, 14:30 Presented by: Contemporary Gallery Kunming and Anthropology Museum of Yunnan University From July 26 to November 25, 2025, the solo exhibition ”Ding Yi: The Winding Path“ is jointly presented by the Anthropology Museum of Yunnan University and Contemporary Gallery Kunming. As one of Ding Yi’s most significant recent projects, the exhibition features a new body of work centered on the ancient Dongba cosmology of the Naxi people, inviting viewers into a unique experience of nature, life, and the spiritual world. The cosmological revelations found in Naxi and Dongba traditions have guided Ding Yi’s iconic “cross” motif into a more intricate visual language, unfolding a contemporary interpretation of traditional culture through abstraction. On November 18 (Tuesday), the Anthropology Museum of Yunnan University and Contemporary Gallery Kunming will host a conversation titled ”Cosmology and artistic expressions in Naxi traditional culture.“ Artist Ding Yi will be joined by Naxi scholar Mu Jlyuan and anthropologist Yuan Changgeng. From their respective perspectives in art and scholarship, the speakers will explore the tensions and resonances between Naxi traditional culture and its visual expressions. The talk will be moderated by Zhang Haichao, Director of the Anthropology Museum of Yunnan University. 盘山之路，渡越星河： 纳西族传统文化中的宇宙观及其艺术表现 对谈嘉宾：丁乙、木基元、袁长庚 主持人：张海超 对谈地点：云南大学人类学博物馆 对谈时间：2025年11月18日（周二）14:30 pm 主办单位：昆明当代美术馆、云南大学人类学博物馆 2025年7月26日至11月25日，丁乙个展“丁乙：盘山之路”于云南大学人类学博物馆和昆明当代美术馆联合呈现。作为艺术家丁乙近几年最重要创作方法的一次呈现，本次展览通过一系列以云南纳西族古老的东巴宇宙观为核心所创作的全新作品，将观众带入对自然、生命与神灵的独特体验。古纳西和东巴文化关于宇宙中生命和自然的启示，指引着丁乙的“十字”，在盘山道路之中发展出更复杂的视觉语言，展开了一场对传统文化的当代性诠释与创作。 11月18日（周二），云南大学人类学博物馆和昆明当代美术馆邀请艺术家丁乙、纳西族学者木基元与人类学学者袁长庚，展开一场围绕“纳西族传统文化中的宇宙观及其艺术表现”的对话。三位嘉宾将从不同的观念和实践出发，引导大家思考纳西族传统文化与艺术表现之间的张力。本场对话活动由云南大学人类学博物馆馆长张海超主持。 #dingyi #naxi #artistconversation #contemporaryart #traditionalculture #cosmology #abstractart