[Photo/China Daily]

Because of his early migration to Beijing, he says he empathizes with today's young city dwellers, who work so hard but their dream to be decent, glamorous and rich is enormously difficult to realize.

"When we look at the dates (of creation) on Wang Mai's works, we will know that he has been in the forefront of the realm of painting," says Philip Tinari, director of the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art.

Wang Mai held a solo exhibition at the Beijing-based institution in 2012.

Tinari says Wang Mai has been renovating his motifs, approach, colors and compositions, while he remains concerned with changing social realities, and these topics of urgency are well-presented in his works.

If you go

10 am-5 pm, closed on Mondays, through July 4. 9 Jiuxianqiao North Street, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 010-5323-2111.