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If we say that traditional oil painting is a language of colours formed on the basis of landscapes, then Zhou Weihua’s language of painting does not come from the observation of nature, but from public images in society. None of the colours in his paintings is in traditional tones. Almost all of the colours he uses are bright and vivid, such as blue juxtaposed with red, like colours in advertisements or in fashion. However, Zhou Weihua uses these colours specifically for certain objects; they are not decorative. Colour relationships are innate in society. To the new generation, this experience is more stable than the observations made by painters of natural landscapes. The composition changes to meet the needs of the colours. There are no rules or logic, just like creative research behind ads: they come from the most unexpected places. To this generation, who are growing up in modern society, their experience with images is formed before they accept traditional paintings, which determines their visual expression. Society forms a second nature, but real nature is a dead end street.

Zhou Weihua directly expresses society’s influence on people’s lives. The figures in his paintings are fashionable and model-like. Zhou Weihua does not judge such lifestyles, but his expression is symbolized by these objects’ visual indication that there is nothing deeper in consumer society. The reference to advertisements suggests that famous people influence the public’s desire. People’s experiences are changed by images. People’s daily lives have been colonized by commercial commodities. The girls in his paintings do not reflect reality, but their hairstyles, clothes, faces and bodies are the ideals, which indicates peoples’ pursuit of perfection as well as people’s confusion between what is real and what is not. False happiness and consumer illusions indicates that peoples’ essence is now directed towards the acquisition of material things. Zhou Weihua has found himself in his paintings. He does not pursue the creation of modernism, but directly reveals himself on his canvases through borrowed images. This authentic experience makes his paintings feel alive and natural.