Life has not been easy on Cen Long. Yet, all that doesn’t break him has contributed towards his forward steps, however crooked and piercing such a pavement may be. Existence to him has always been predicated by responsibility—a sense of mission to paint something that illuminates the importance and glory of love.

Li Hou’s work is a study in semiotics. His ink paintings are composed according to contemporary style. He dithers his lines and carefully stages ink splatters to give them a feeling of spontaneity; these pseudo-random patterns build up a complex texture for the paintings. It simultaneously expresses cheerfulness and rationality, vitality and deliberation.