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Ding Yi is a pioneering figure in Chinese contemporary abstract art, celebrated for his decades-long commitment to a single visual motif: the cross. Born in Shanghai in 1962, Ding graduated from the Shanghai School of Arts and Crafts in 1983 before earning a degree in traditional Chinese painting from Shanghai University in 1990. Emerging amidst the turbulent avant-garde currents of the '85 New Wave movement, he was profoundly influenced by the non-representational approaches of Western artists such as Piet Mondrian and Frank Stella. In response, he chose a radically divergent path from his local peers, rejecting narrative storytelling and political commentary in pursuit of a pure, rational visual language.

In 1988, Ding initiated his defining life work, the ongoing Appearance of Crosses series, centred on '+' and 'x' marks derived from industrial printing registration marks. Initially adopting rulers, tape and technical pens to eliminate all trace of the artist's hand, he sought an objective, non-referential art stripped of subjective emotion. Over time, however, his systematic process evolved to embrace intuitive colour relationships, varied grounds — ranging from raw linen and tartan fabrics to carved wood and paper — and dynamic shifts in scale, mirroring the chaotic urban transformation and rapid modernisation of contemporary China.

One of the first Chinese abstract painters to gain international prominence, Ding represented China at major milestones, including the 45th Venice Biennale in 1993, the 1st Asia-Pacific Triennial in 1993 and the 11th Sydney Biennale in 1998. Major solo exhibitions include the Long Museum in Shanghai, M+ in Hong Kong and the Guangdong Museum of Art. On the secondary market, his large-scale early works from the late 1980s and 1990s are highly coveted.

Today, artworks by Ding anchor prestigious institutional and private collections globally, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, M+ in Hong Kong, the Long Museum and Yuz Museum in Shanghai, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum.