Although oil painting was to become Zao Wou-ki's primary medium and the source of his worldwide renown, he also experimented in printmaking, Chinese ink painting and watercolour. His stunning works are found in major museum collections throughout the world. Born in 1921 in Beijing, Zao began living in Paris in 1948. A student of Lin Fengmian, a pioneer of modern Chinese paintings, Zao studied at Hangzhou National College of Art before he left for Paris. While drawing from his Chinese roots, he became an exponent of Lyrical Abstraction in oil painting after becoming inspired by Western artists, in particular Paul Klee.