Australian-Chinese artist Guan Wei has created a series of works on paper 'The New Classic of the Mountains and Seas' inspired by the Chinese literature of the same title, which dates from third century B.C. to second century A.D. More than just a gazette, it is more an exotic encyclopedic catalogue of flora, fauna, races and rituals of the ancient world, both real and supernatural. Guan Wei re-interprets with humour this fascinating literature and seeks to create new insights of a harmonious equilibrium between man and the environment through the lens of the new world order of the 21st century.

With his signature wit and acute ability to mix iconic symbols both from the past/present and East/West, Guan layers his works with social awareness, political allusions and cross-cultural narratives often based on his personal experiences. In the work Maps of the Celestial Navigation from the Map of Zheng He inspired by the nautical voyage of the famous Ming Dynasty seafaring eunuch, Guan incorporates the famous Southern Cross constellation, symbolic of the southern hemisphere, with imagery of the traditional Chinese naval vessel like a page from a classical Chinese text. Guan Wei appears to be referencing his personal journey in the form of a Chinese junk setting sail towards Australia where he has lived and worked for over twenty years.