Shen Wei is a Chinese-American artist based in New York City. He is known for his intimate self-portraiture and contemplative images of people and nature, highlighting the understated beauty of his surroundings. He also works in painting, sculpture, and video.
Shen Wei’s work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Museum of the City of New York, the National Portrait Gallery in London, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Power Station of Art in Shanghai, China, La Triennale di Milano in Italy, the North Carolina Museum of Art, and the Morgan Library & Museum in New York. His work has been featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, The New Yorker, Aperture, ARTnews, Paris Review, ArtReview, Financial Times, and The Burlington Magazine.
Shen Wei’s work is included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Getty Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Photography, the Library of Congress, the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Morgan Library & Museum, the CAFA Art Museum, and the Ringling Museum of Art, among others.
He holds an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, New York, and a BFA from Minneapolis College of Art and Design.
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Collections:
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA
The Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA
Morgan Library & Museum, New York, NY
CAFA Art Museum, Beijing, China
Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago, IL
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, FL
Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA
Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL
North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC
He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen, China
LSU Museum of Art, Rouge, LA
Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, Tampa, FL
Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA
Southeast Museum of Photography, Daytona, FL
Museum of Chinese in America, New York, NY
Harn Museum of Art, Gainesville, FL
Lilley Museum of Art, Reno, NV
Rockefeller Brothers Fund, New York, NY
The Starr Foundation, New York, NY
Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung, Munich, Germany
Sunpride Foundation, Hong Kong
The Warehouse, Atlanta, GA
Kinsey Institute, Indianapolis, IN
Light Work, Syracuse, NY
Credit Suisse, Zurich, Switzerland
The Swiss Re Group, Beijing, China
Estee Lauder, New York, NY
United Airlines, Chicago, IL
Target, Minneapolis, MN
Agnes Gund Collection, New York, NY
John J. Studzinski Collection, New York / London
Allen G. Thomas Jr. Collection, Wilson, NC
Solo Exhibitions:
2024
Foreign Agent, My Garden, Lausanne, Switzerland
Zeto Art, A Season Particular, Paris, France
UP Gallery, For It So Seems That, Hsinchu City, Taiwan
2023
Flowers Gallery, A Season Particular, London, UK
2022
Zeto Art, Les Saisons Particulieres, Paris, France
SinArts Gallery, I Miss You Already, The Hague, The Netherlands
2020
Flowers Gallery, Shen Wei – Self, Hong Kong
2019
Flowers Gallery, Shen Wei, London, U.K.
2018
Xie Zilong Photography Museum, Shen Wei: Blossoms, Changsha, China
ON/Gallery, Undefined Time of Intuition, Beijing, China
2017
Flowers Gallery, Between Blossoms, New York, NY
Signum Foundation, Between Blossoms, Lodz, Poland
Visionairs Gallery, Invisible Atlas, Singapore
SinArts Gallery, Between Blossoms, The Hague, Netherlands
2016
Galerie Christophe Tailleur, Dusk of the Harmonious Garden, Strasbourg, France
2015
Flowers Gallery, Invisible Atlas, New York, NY
2014
H Gallery, I Miss You Already, Bangkok, Thailand
2013
LA. Galerie Lothar Albrecht, Chinese Sentiment, Frankfurt, Germany
2012
Daniel Cooney Fine Art, I Miss You Already, New York, NY
Light Work, I Miss You Already, New York, NY
Epson Imaging Gallery, Chinese Sentiment, Shanghai, China
Monika Olko Gallery, Chinese Sentiment, Sag Harbor, NY
2011
Daniel Cooney Fine Art, Chinese Sentiment, New York, NY
The Art Institute of Boston, Chinese Sentiment, Boston, MA
Chinese American Arts Council, Almost Naked, New York, NY
Lumenvisum Gallery, Chinese Sentiment, Hong Kong, China
2009
Randall Scott Gallery, Almost Naked, New York, NY
2008
Kunst Licht Gallery, Almost Naked, Shanghai, China
Chinese American Arts Council, Concubines of New York, New York, NY
2006
Elkins Gallery Temple University, Almost Naked, Philadelphia, PA
2004
Chinese American Arts Council, Concubines of NY, New York
2003
TIXE Gallery, Behind the Persona, New York, NY
Selected Group Exhibitions:
2024
National Portrait Gallery, Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize 2024, London, UK
Benrubi Gallery, Gorgeousness, New York, NY
Nan Ke Gallery, The Return of Dionysus, Shanghai, China
2023
The Morgan Library & Museum, Uncommon Denominator: Katchadourian at the Morgan, New York, NY
Berea College Doris Ulmann Galleries, Intimacy, Berea, KY
Eli Klein Gallery, (In)directions: Queerness in Chinese Contemporary Photography, New York, NY
Mon Dieu Project, Intimate Exchanges, Los Angeles, CA
2022
The Ringling Museum of Art, A Decade of Collecting, Sarasota, FL
Harn Museum of Art, Global Perspectives, Gainsville, FL
2021
Morgan Library & Museum, New at The Morgan, New York, NY
Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung, Wide Open. Ins Offene, Munich, Germany
Museum of Fine Arts, From Margins to Mainstays, St. Petersburg, FL
Meou Art Center, Beyond the Borders, Shanghai, China
Fu Qiumeng Fine Art, Yet, only voice echoes, New York, NY
Galerie Youn, Depouille, Montreal, Canada
2020
LSU Museum of Art, Art in Louisiana – Views into the Collection, Baton Rouge, LA
Eli Klein Gallery, Alienation, New York, NY
Galerie Lothar Albrecht, Das Ding / The Thing, Frankfurt, Germany
Flowers Gallery Kingsland Road, 50×50, London, U.K.
2019
Museum of Contemporary Photography, Go Down Moses, Chicago, IL
Hasselblad Foundation, Moonlight – 50 Years of Photographing the Moon, Göteborg, Sweden
Museo Fotografia Contemporanea, West East, Milan, Italy
Magda Danysz Gallery, La Main Qui Dessinait Tout Seule, Shanghai, China
Corcoran School of the Arts & Design, From The Margins, Washington, DC
Up Gallery, Hsinchu City, Taiwan
Le Reservoir, Asia Shot, Sete, France
2018
Harn Museum of Art, Inside Outside: Outside Inside, Gainsville, FL
CAFA Art Museum, Beijing Photo Biennial, Beijing, China
Museo Universitario del Chopo, Divina Comedia, Mexico City, Mexico
galerie with tsjalling, Menage à Trois, Groningen, The Netherlands
SinArts Gallery, Menage à Trois, The Hague, The Netherlands
2017
Boston University Art Galleries, Occupancies, Boston, MA
Bundoora Homestead Art Center, Closing the Distance, Melbourne, Australia
Block Gallery, Plausible Worlds, Raleigh, NC
M97 Gallery, Photosynthesis, Shanghai, China
2016
Power Station of Art, Snacks, Shanghai, China
The Ringling Museum of Art, Exposure: Naked before the lens, Sarasota, FL
ArtexArte Fundación Alfonso y Luz Castillo, Body and Desire, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2015
La Triennale di Milano, Arts & Foods. Rituals since 1851. Milan, Italy
Langenzersdorf Museum, Still, Langenzersdorf, Austria
Museum of Fine Arts, Five Decades of Photography at MFA, St. Petersburg, FL
Galerie Foto-Forum, Still, Bolzano, Italy
Niederösterreich Gesellschaft für Kunst und Kultur, Still, St. Pölten, Austria
Museum Orth, Still, Orth, Austria
Haus der Kunst, Still, Baden, Austria
Soo Visual Arts Center, Exploring Art Patronage, Minneapolis, MN
CCI Fabrica, Reminder Function, Moscow, Russia
2014
North Carolina Museum of Art, Private Eye, Raleigh, NC
Serendipia Gallery of Art, Impermeables, Madrid, Spain
Flowers Gallery, Interiors, New York, NY
VanDernoot Gallery Lesley University, Visible Soul, Cambridge, MA
AIVA International Video Art Festival, Bubble (2013), Finspang, Sweden
Flanders Gallery, Frames per Second, Raleigh, NC
2013
Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Recent Acquisitions: Prints, Drawings, & Photographs, FL
The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Making Pictures of People, Kansas City, MO
He Xiangning Art Museum, Local Future, Shenzhen, China
Moscow Museum of Modern Art. Between Image and Personality. Moscow, Russia
Flowers Gallery. Under My Skin: Contemporary Nudes. New York, NY
Ningbo Museum of Art, Austrian Contemporary Art made in China, Ningbo, China
Krasnoyarsk International Media Art Festival, Now & After, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
International Center of Photography, Stories in the Social Landscape, New York
Turchin Center for the Visual Arts. Men Working: The Collection of Allen Thomas. Boone, NC
The Kinsey Institute, Face Value: Portraits from The Kinsey Institute, Bloomington, IN
Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Size really Does Matter, Los Angeles, CA
Sheppard Contemporary, Refigured, University Of Nevada, Reno, NV
Wasserman Project, Summer Group Show, Birmingham, MI
2012
Philadelphia Museum of Art, PMA Photography Portfolio 2012, Philadelphia, PA
Southeast Museum of Photography, Anthology 2012, Daytona Beach, FL
Liu Haisu Art Museum, Hong Kong and One World, Shanghai, China
Daegu Photo Biennale, Special Exhibition: Repositioned Personal, Daegu, Korea
Bruce Silverstein Gallery, 29×29, New York, NY
2011
Museum of the City of New York, Moveable Feast, New York, NY
Harn Museum of Art, Highlights from the Asian Collection, Gainesville, Florida
Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery Haverford College, Through the Plain Camera, Haverford, PA
Stacion Center for Contemporary Art Prishtina, I have also other favorites, Prishtina, Kosova
Australia Center for Photography, 100 Portraits, Sydney, Australia
DOB Hualamphong Gallery, Human/Time/Space, Bangkok, Thailand
Epson Imaging Gallery, Faces of Life, Shanghai, China
2010
CAFA Art Museum, Faces of Life, Beijing, China
Flanders Art Gallery, Open Season, Raleigh, NC
The Kinsey Institute, Nature & Nurture, Bloomington, IN
Corcoran Gallery of Art,100 Portraits at, Washington D.C.
Arts Council of Wilson, From The Collection of Allen Thomas, Jr., Wilson, NC
Galleria Contemporaneo, Global Photography, Venice, Italy.
2009
Savignano Immagini La Fotografia, Global Photography, Savignano, Italy
J&Z Gallery, Portraits of Youth, Shenzhen, China
2008
The University of Arts. Best of Show. Philadelphia, PA
Australian Centre for Photography, Hijacked, Sydney, Australia.
Silver Eye Center for Photography, Pittsburgh, PA
Katzen Art Center, The Washington Project for the Arts, Washington DC
Deutsche Bank Gallery, Dare to Struggle, Dare to Win, New York, NY
Fluctuating Images, Hijacked, Stuttgart, Germany
2007
Griffin Museum of Photography, Annual Exhibition, Winchester, MA
ZONE Chelsea Center for the Arts, U Can’t Touch Dis, New York, NY
Jen Bekman Gallery, A New American Portrait, New York, NY
2006
Center on Contemporary Art, 2006 CoCA Annual, Seattle, WA
Dougherty Art Center, TPS15, Austin, TX
Visual Arts Gallery, Early Work, New York, NY
2005 – 2000
Lincoln Center Avery Fisher Hall, Obsession, New York, NY
SoHo Photo, Double Exposure, New York, NY
Minnesota Center for Photography, ASMP Personal Work, Minneapolis
Intermedia Arts, Flaming Film Festival, Minneapolis, MN
Minnetonka Center for the Arts, Photo Exhibition 2001, Wayzata, MN
Calhoun Gallery, Visual Language, Minneapolis, MN
Education:
2006
School of Visual Arts, New York, NY
MFA, Photography, Video and Related Media.
2003
Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis, MN
BFA, Photography
Monographs:
2024
A Season Particular. TBW Books. Oakland, CA (Forthcoming)
2018
Almost Naked. Jiazazhi Press. Ningbo, China.
Shen Wei: Blossom. (Exhibition Catalogue) Xie Zilong Photography Museum. Changsha, China.
2016
SNACK. (Exhibition Catalogue) Power Station of Art. Shanghai, China.
2012
Shen Wei – I Miss You Already. (Exhibition Catalogue) Contact Sheet by Light Work. Syracuse, NY.
2011
Chinese Sentiment. Charles Lane Press. New York, NY.
2009
Almost Naked (Limited Edition). Self-published. New York / Shanghai.
Awards and Residencies:
2023
La Napoule Art Foundation, Artist Residency, France
2016
New York Foundation for the Arts, Photography Fellowship
2015
The Studios of Key West, Artist Residency
2014
Hong Kong Design Institute, Visiting Fellow
2012
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Photography Portfolio Competition Winner
Asian Cultural Council, Asian Art and Religion Fellowship, New York, NY
2010
Light Work, Artist-in-Residency, Syracuse University, NY
2009
Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center, Creative Artist Residency, Italy
New York Photo Festival, Best Book Nominee
2008
Urban Artist Initiative / New York City Fellowship
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Manhattan Arts Fund, NY
2007
The Griffin Museum of Photography, The Griffin Award
American Photo, Top 15 Artist of the Year
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Manhattan Arts Fund, NY
Lecture and Artist Talk:
George Washington University, Washington D.C.
Parsons School of Design, New York, NY
School of Visual Arts, New York, NY
Aperture Foundation, New York, NY
Shanghai Center of Photography, Shanghai, China
Hong Kong Design Institute, Hong Kong
International Center of Photography, New York, NY
Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
Art Institute of Boston, Cambridge, MA
Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA
Hamilton College, Clinton, NY
Renmin University of China, Beijing, China
The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN
Bayero University Kano, Nigeria
OfPix Foundation, Beijing, China
Three Shadows Photography Art Center, Beijing, China
China Photographic Publishing House, Beijing, China
Press:
The Guardian. “Light up! The best of Photo Basel 2023 – in pictures.” June 12, 2023. Goodinson, Elena.
Weltkunst. “Die Nische Bluht.” June 12, 2023. Meixner, Christienen.
Art Review. “Top 10 Exhibitions to See in May 2023.” May 02, 2023. Jiang, Yuwen.
The Burlington Magazine. “Ten years of photography acquisitions at the Morgan Library & Museum” Oct. 2022. Bailey, Colin B.
NRC. “Zoeken naar identiteit op fotobeurs Unseen.” Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Van Dijck, Rianne.
Het Parool. “Fotografiebeurs Unseen zet vinkjes bij alle thema’s van dit moment.” September 16, 2022. Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Dijksterhuis, Edo.
The New York Times. “Works for now, by queer artists of color.” June 29, 2020. New York, NY.
The Guardian. “Shen Wei’s best photograph”. May 30, 2019. London, UK. Sawa, Dale Berning.
British Journal of Photography, “Broken Sleeve”. May 2, 2019. London, UK. Warner, Marigold
Le Figaro. “Les tribulations de la photo en Chine”. 26 March, 2019. Paris, France. Duponchelle, Valerie.
Transfuge Magazine. “Une génération chinoise à nu”. March, 2019. Paris, France. Guette, Henri.
EXIT Magazine. “Jardin / Garden.” Issue 71. September, 2018. Madrid, Spain.
Photography is Art, “Spectators on the City’s Sideline.” Yao, Yao. Oct. 2018. Hong Kong.
Dagblad van het Noorden, “Galerie-eilandjes werken samen,” Feb. 2018. Netherlands.
The Paris Review, “Between Blossoms”April 12, 2017. Piepenbring, Dan.
Financial Times. “Snapshot: ‘Between Blossoms’ by Shen Wei.” March 3, 2017. Franklin, Alice.
CNN. “The dreamy, intimate portraits of Shen Wei.” October 27, 2016. Chan, Wilfred.
The Guardian. “In bloom: the erotic botanics of Shen Wei – in pictures.” September 23, 2017.
Rai News. “Punctum – Il mondo di Shen Wei.” Feb. 25, 2015. Bolzani, Cristina.
Chinese Photography. “Shen Wei – I Miss You Already.” Feb. 2015. Hannah Frieser.
EXIT Image & Culture. “Desnudos: Nudes.” April, 2014. Madrid, Spain.
Tampa Bay Times. “Review: Gems to discover among Museum of Fine Arts’ recent acquisitions.” Jan. 13, 2014. Bennett, Lennie
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. “Fremde und vertraute chinesische Gefuhle.” Jan. 8, 2014. Schutte, Christoph.
Frankfurter Rundschau, “Unangetastetes China.” Dec. 23, 2013.
Frankfurter Neue Presse. “Momente zwischen Aufbruch und Abbruch.” Dec. 10, 2013. Derouiche, Gabriele.
Time Out New York. “Under My Skin: Nudes in Contemporary Photography.” August 24, 2013
GQ China. “Feature: Shen Wei – Upright in the Fog.” April, 2013. Xiaosong, Tang.
ARTnews. “Review: Shen Wei.” December, 2012. Kley, Elisabeth.
The New Yorker. “Goings On About Town Art: Shen Wei.” September 10, 2012. Aletti, Vince.
Time Out New York. “Picture Imperfect.” September 13, 2012.
China Photo Press. “Chinese Sentiment.” August, 2012. Wei, Jiang.
ARTnews. “Double Exposure.” May, 2012. Landi, Ann.
Pipeline. “Liberating Gentle Tease – Interview with Shen Wei.” May, 2012. Kozyreva, Cristina.
Life Magazine China. “Table Sentiment.” November, 2011. Ling, Huchong; Wei, Jiang.
ArtScope. “Shen Wei: Chinese Sentiment.” September/Pctober, 2011. Liu, Franklin W.
The Outlook Magazine. “Creative 100.” August, 2011. Amos.
Ming Magazine. “Shen Wei – Chinese Sentiment” July, 2011. Wei, Jiang.
The New Yorker. “Goings On About Town Art: Shen Wei.” June 6, 2011. Aletti, Vince.
The New Yorker. “Critic’s Notebook: Food for Thought.” May 23, 2011. Aletti, Vince.
Wall Street Journal. “Moveable Feast: Fresh Produce and NYC Green Cart Program.” May 7, 2011. Meyers, William.
Shanghai Photography, “Faces of Life – Contemporary Chinese Portraits.” May/June, 2011. Wei, Jiang.
Artinfo.com, “The Agenda: Chinese Sentiment – photographs by Shen Wei. ” April, 2011
Aperture, “The NYC Green Cart Photography Commission – Fresh Produce by Shen Wei.” Winter, 2010.
The New Yorker, “Goings on About Town – Review: Sef Exposure”, July, 2010. Vince Aletti.
Artforum. “Review: Portrait of the Youth”. June, 2009. Mathieu Borysevicz.
Art China. “Portrait of the Youth.” June, 2009. Azure Wu.
Life Magazine (China). “Almost Naked.” June, 2009. Beibei Yin.
Travel+Leisure. “Modern Traveler: Shen Wei.” March, 2009. Tao Zi.
Homeland. “Ten Minutes Interview: Shen Wei” February, 2009. Na Tsu.
Photo Art Asia. “Asian Artists in World Focuses: Shen Wei.” December, 2008. Joerg Colberg.
Photo Review. “The 2008 Photo Review Competition Winners.” December, 2008.
TimeOut Shanghai. “Shen Wei: The Bridge of Physical Nakedness.” October, 2008. Jay Hai.
NY Arts. “Shen Wei – Almost Naked.” March, 2008.
Vision. “Vision China: Almost Naked.” May, 2008. Chan Chan.
Photo District News. “30 New and Emerging Photographers to Watch in 2008.” March, 2008.
La Tempestad. “Almost Naked by Shen Wei.” February, 2008.
Chinese Photography. “Atman, Introspection and Freedom, an interview with Shen Wei.” February, 2008. Ren Yue.
Chinese Photography. “Behind Mask – About Shen Wei.” February, 2008. Joreg Colberg.
China Photo Press. “Special Feature: Faces of 2007 in photography.” January 4, 2008.
Pics Magazine. “Shen Wei – Almost Naked.” 2008
Art Times. “U Can’t Touch Dis.” September, 2007.
American Photo. “A New Generation of Photo Pioneers.” November/December, 2007. Miki Johnson.
0086 Magazine. “Shen Wei Near Bareness.” DPecember, 2007. Jeuce Huang.
China Photo Press. “American Photo’s 15 Emerging Artists.” November 9, 2007. Zheng Lijun.
Saatchi News. “Shen Wei: Saatchi Online Critics’ Choice.” July 2, 2007. Aaron Schuman.
Wonkavision. “Feature Artist: Shen Wei.” May, 2007. Chad Muthard.
JPG Magazine . “Photo Essay: Almost Naked by Shen Wei.” March, 2007.
China Press . “Concubines of New York captures the stories behind Chinese Opera .” March 10. 2007. William Yep.
World Journal . “Shen Wei photography on Chinese Opera.” March 10, 2007. David Hsieh.
American Photo. “Images of the Year.” Jan/Feb, 2007.
The Stranger. “In Art News.” December 5, 2006. Jen Graves.
Blueeyes Magazine. “Portfolio: Shen Wei.” July, 2006.
Conscientious . “A Conversation with Shen Wei.” June 6, 2006. Joerg Colberg.
World Journal. “Asian photography exhibition at Lincoln Center.” August, 2005. David Hsieh.
St. Paul Pioneer Press. “Stay Focused.” September 5, 2004. Rhoda Fukushima.
St. Paul pioneer Press. “Two Roads Converge.” July, 2004. Fukushima, Rhoda.