Introduction

Sun Xun was born in 1980 in Fuxin in Liaoning province, China. He graduated in 2005 from the Print-making Department of the China Academy of Art. In 2006 he established π Animation Studio. He currently lives and works in Beijing. The works of Sun Xun are mainly drawing and/or animation. Sun Xun also exhibits his individual cell drawings and other mixed media works, oftentimes alongside his videos. Sun Xun’s personal visual language consists of metaphoric imagery, dark and intense hand drawing, and dreamy narrative. In recent years, Sun Xun uses New Media Art as a point of origin to explore more possibilities within the expansive realm of visual art: he explores narrative methods using diverse mediums such as newspaper, book, woodcut print, Chinese ink, pigment powder, probe into non-linear expressions of time and space, and inquire into both realistic and fantastical representations based on his own understanding of society and sociological theories.    

As an artist, Sun Xun’s works were collected by many art institutions, including White Rabbit Contemporary Chinese Art Collection, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, M+ Museum, etc. While participating in art exhibitions extensively, Sun Xun has performed special screenings at Hong Kong International Film Festival, Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Holland Animation Film Festival, etc. He was also nominated for Venice International Film Festival and Berlin International Film Festival respectively in 2010 and 2011.

His recent major solo exhibitions include: Sun Xun: Parallel Circus(2024); Sun Xun: The Immeasurable Everything, ShanghART Gallery M50, Shanghai (2023); Sun Xun: Tears of Chiwen, Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, U.S.A (2023); Sun Xun: An Infinite Journey, ShanghART Gallery, Shanghai (2022); Sun Xun: Mythological Time, Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada (2021); Sun Xun: Time Spy, The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Florida, U.S.A (2019); Sun Xun, Museum of Contemporary Art, Australia (2018).

His recent major group exhibitions include: Follow the Rabbit, Museum Liaunig, Austria (2023); Shuo Shu, White Rabbit Gallery, Australia (2022); Hawai'i Triennial, Royal Hawaiian Center, U.S.A (2022); M+ Sigg Collection: From Revolution to Globalisation, M+ Museum, Hong Kong (2021); Asia Society Triennial, We Do Not Dream Alone, Asia Society Museum, New York, U.S.A (2020); 13th Havana Biennial, National Art Center, Havana, Cuba (2019); The Sleeper Awakes, White Rabbit Gallery, Sydney, Australia (2018); The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Chinese Art Initiative, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, (2016).

Sun Xun was awarded Asia Arts Game Changer Awards in 2018, the 8th AAC Art China · Young Artist Awards in 2014, and the Chinese Contemporary Art Awards (CCAA Best Young Artist) in 2010.