Kexin Di is a beautifully trained artist, who accepts as true John Currin's words, "I believe in the old idea of technique…I believe you need it if you're going to have magic and genius and masterpieces." (New York Times, 16 November 2003) His prestigious art degrees prove his steadfast devotion to his craft while his oeuvre proclaims his coming of age very young. He is now thirty and the old adage, we reach our technical maturity by age 30 and our stylistic maturity by age 40 is to be the shining path Kexin D. is pursuing.

　　Kexin Di shows versatility of pigmentation which can be seen in his paint encrusted, Wind (2010) and My King's Garden (2014) and polished perfection of his, Fantasies behind the Pearly Curtain (2015) and The Story about the Artist (2014). His clarity of narrative is well seen in his series of fishermen from his native village and his ability to obscure reality in enigma may be found in his recent oil, Politeia (2017). His gripping oil, The Massacre (2010) proves his fearless willingness to challenge the establishment.

　　The artist has two significant things "going for him," he is prolific in his production of paintings and he paints in attention getting scale. But can he in his third decade mature into one of the great artist's of our time. With his talent and his wife's faith, he certainly can be listed among the greats. Of course he needs to create works of art that make a positive difference in the world. This artist can do just that and I believe he will do it. One can only hope that his recent study with Odd Nerdrum will not force his art toward the subjective expressionism. As Eugene Delacroix once said, "The first virtue of any work of art, that it be a feast for the eyes." Remember that, Kexin and the world is yours.

Vern G. Swanson, Ph.D.