A Sun Wu’s paintings and sculptures evoke a different time and a different place, from the red ochres of clay and sand to the bold black outlines directing its energy into abstracted human forms. Indeed, African art has been a major source of inspiration for the Taiwan-born, Paris-based artist known for his extensive travels around the world, particularly the ten years he spent journeying across Africa, the Amazon, and the South Pacific.

He grew up in the Northeast Taiwanese countryside, living near the aboriginal tribes of the mountains. After finishing studies in Taipei and Madrid, he set off on his nomadic adventures to experience life and develop his own visual language.

The artist was profoundly changed when he set foot in Africa and discovered its traditional arts, of which he is now a massive collector. From living in Egypt, Mali, Nigeria, South Africa, among other countries, he found his personal style, incorporating Chinese philosophy with the expressionistic forms favoured by African artworks.