Hybrid creatures, warrior monkeys, literary heroes and icons of pop culture. All of them come together in Mu Pan’s universe, a violent and disquieting place fuelled with anger and wit. “I’m a storyteller,” says Mu Pan and his visual narratives, whether in acrylics or ballpoint pen, are genuine explosions of imagination and irreverence.

Mu Pan (1976) was born in Taichung City, Taiwan. His family are Chinese Mainlanders and the complex histories of Taiwan, China and Japan, along with his sense of Chinese identity, feed directly into the artist’s work. Japanese woodblock prints, Buddhist iconography, manga and wuxia or martial arts are all reflected in Mu Pan’s unique visual language.

After moving to the USA in 1997, Mu Pan studied at the School of Visual Arts, New York, where he now teaches. From his Brooklyn home and studio, Mu Pan brings together history, geopolitics, and observation on human nature, adds a dose of caustic humour and fuses his scenes with dynamism and action.

Mu Pan has held solo exhibitions in Paris, Copenhagen and New York, among others, and participated in numerous group shows, including at prestigious venues including the Musée de la Halle St Pierre in Paris and the Worcester Art Museum, Massachusetts. His first museum retrospective was held at Espacio SOLO Madrid in 2019.