In the composed and established painting circles of Xi’An, Hou Zhuowu’s works stand out as very peculiar. His conceptual ink wash paintings express an awareness of life’s tribulations. He does not paint sceneries that warm the heart and delight the eye, but instead his paintings portray nature ravaged by mankind. Landscapes are no more the homeland of people, but seem as if transformed into the omen of Machu Picchu’s doom or into the last pages of the Vedas. Through means of symbolism and realistic techniques, all kinds of contradictory elements are blended in his paintings; in them appear Salvador Dali, lady ghosts, characters from plays and political leaders, which in turn become the masters or guest performers in the scenic depiction. Tree trunks become bandaged, or are transformed into the backbones of animals, mountains burst, trees mutate, and the non-natural objects of the painting become natural, whilst the naturalness of the painting is broken up by the strength of the occult. He weaves together history and current events, reason and perception, allowing technique and concepts to appear in a complex manner.

　　Hou Zhuowu’s heteromorphic landscape paintings break with the contended and graceful mood of paintings by ancient literati, attempting to change the way people are used to view traditional landscape paintings, whilst at the same time maintaining traditional elements. Even if the scene portrays a sense of outburst, details of the painting still look like orthodox ink wash done in the traditional technique. Hou Zhuowu’s paintings blend together technique with ideas, displaying a double complexity, even that of form and content. He uses the traditional style of composition, proportion and association of ink painting art to portray a shocking depiction of the conflict of belief and nature in turn creating a break in civilization. He inherits the plump classical painting style of the Chang’An school of painters, where no space is left, as though making all efforts to make the painting worth. If one says that the Chang’An school was not too concerned with the implied meaning of the paintings, then Hou Zhuowu’s works score a success in their meaning. The meaning is not singular but composite, reflective, calling into question, bringing into light different inclinations, all these weaved into one scene.

　　Hou Zhuowu had an interest in painting since childhood, and even held an exhibition at the early age of five. He was very sensitive to the world of adults and to the political issues of the time, being a top-rate student. His classmates said that if he walked into an official career he would become a star in political circles, yet he took the initiative and made a 180 degree turn, never acting according to convention any more nor being a compliant student. After little more than a year since having entered the traditional Chinese painting department of the Xi’An Art Academy, he wrote a letter to the chairman of the department denouncing the malpractice in teaching, and dropped out of school entering the business world and opening a gallery. He has collected several hundred works spaning from the Song Dynasty to famous contemporary pieces, and prepared and invested in the construction of a traditional art museum, his understanding of tradition and his painting skills exceeding those of many celebrities in the traditional Chinese painting world. In the spiritual field, Hou Zhuowu is like a hermit living in the heart of the city, yearning for a quiet and deserted piece of uninhabited land. He has traveled by car to Tibet eight times, and has been to the sources of the Maquan River, the Shiquan River and the Xiangquan River, and north of the Gui Lake on a pilgrimage to the king of sacred mountains, Mount Kailash, the center of the world in the eyes of the Hindus and the home of Shiva. He once walked the steps of a Tibetan Buddhist and a Hindu devotee, walking along the foot of mountains and over six thousand meter mountain ridges, circumambulating Mount Kailash for a week, seeking experiences beyond the earthly world.

　　Maybe Hou Zhuowu has come into contact with too many ancient remnants, always crisscrossing between ancient and modern times, lingering between history and the future, never being much concerned about daily life or fashions in the painting circles. He is very curious about all sorts if issues ranging from the problems of the physical world of art to the general trends of the world, from supernatural phenomena to relevant knowledge, like spirit writing, the art of being invisible and other supernatural arts. He believes that because Chinese people in the 20th century have since childhood had an education against religion and superstition, people’s senses have been suppressed, and the channel between people and the unknown world has been cut off. Compared to numerous experts of calligraphy and painting nowadays that can only imitate ancient prose and verse, Hou Zhuowu can compile that of his own. This is something seldom seen in artists from his generation.

　　Hou Zhuowu’s art brings forth features of great narrative. In the contemporary art world where everyone just pays attention to detail and tends to remain concerned with the trivialities of art circles, Hou Zhuowu’s works with their great narrative and content posses qualities that go against the tide.