Ji Dachun's painting of a long horse presents playful enjoyment. Zou Hong/China Daily

"I am still moving on and exploring in darkness," he adds. "Unconsciously, I evolved."

Ji hails from Jiangsu province and graduated from the Department of Oil Painting of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1993. His early work depicts historical figures, cartoon animals, children's toys and everyday objects against stark white backgrounds. Later, his practice engaged more biological and cybernetic forms, which adapted forms of anatomical and botanical drawings.

"I like trying new ideas, though most of the time the result is bad," he says. "I also like watching other people paint, which not only inspires me but also makes me feel shameful. I don't think a good artist can create good works all the time. He has to suffer failure, which will lead to a new height and a different perspective."

Ji's works have been exhibited widely abroad, with solo exhibitions at Rome's Museum of Contemporary Art in 2013, the Museum of Fine Arts Berne in 2007, and the Posco Art Museum in Seoul in 2005.

During the past two decades, what Ji has been doing, he says, is seeking the difference between himself and other artists as well as the difference of his own works.

"That's why I say painting is painful and unreal. But gradually, after 40, I can feel the happiness from it," he says.