curriculum at the academy. This series of oil on paper paintings are representative of Zhang Dali's last university years (1986–1987) and of his search for contamination between eastern and western art. Zhang Dali has already decided that he wants to be a “contemporary artist” and not a Chinese traditional painting artist. The education he received at the Central Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Beijing includes the study of European and Chinese classic art, and the study of the most influential movements of western art in the twentieth century, from Bauhaus to Pop Art." Formally, I have been deeply influenced by Wu Guanzhong. I was shocked the first time I saw Wu’s paintings, he used red to paint green trees. We were all shocked and thought he was colorblind. We told him the tree was green and he replied: “The tree is green, but can’t we paint it with other colors? You should paint with the color that expresses your inner most feelings.” It was then that I realized that the portrayal of natural setting landscapes and objects didn’t have to correspond to their actual form but could refer to my inner emotions. " Zhang Dali in conversation for Asia Art Archive, Contemporary Chinese Art from 1980 to 1990, 2000 Dialogue and Demolition Zhang Dali's encounter with graffiti first occurred in Europe. From 1989 to 1995, while he was living in Bologna, graffiti art presented itself as a means of dialogue between the artist and the people moving in the urban landscape. His first graffiti were painted in Bologna, and other European cities: Vienna, Ljubljana, Berlin. After returning to China in 1995, he witnessed the demolition of old alleys and neighborhoods, the forced relocation of the inhabitants and the propaganda to convince the citizens that “modernization” is good and necessary. He then started to wander the streets by night, on his bicycle with a spray can, leaving on the walls condemned to demolition a head profile and his signature AK-47 and 18K. In a project that will last a decade, Zhang Dali not only establishes a dialogue with the city's inhabitants, he also asks questions about the legitimacy of modernization, about the costs for the historical and cultural heritage, and the price of physical and psychological suffering. His graffiti were the spark which became a great conflagration in the public debate on the significance, modes and finality of urban