Pei-Shen Qian was pleased. He would never have to paint Chairman Mao again.

The 1970s were not a good time for Qian, or for that matter, any young experimental artist in China. During the Cultural Revolution, Qian subsisted on creating endless images of the Chinese dictator, which were displayed in schools and offices across the country.

The official portrait of Mao Zedong, attributed to Zhang Zhenshi

But as the decade closed, China began to reopen itself to the world, which allowed Qian’s artistic potential to flourish. As part of an experimental art movement in Shanghai, Qian could finally exhibit his work, helping incite a new avant-garde art scene in China.

Things were looking up.

“The City That Never Sleeps” (1978) by Pei-Shen Qian. The New York Times actually has a review of his work.

In 1981, Qian emigrated to America, hoping to further his artistic career. After settling down in Queens, he took classes at The Art Students League. But by the end of the decade, his optimism slipped again.

Painting by Pei-Shen Qian

Initially celebrated in his homeland and abroad, Qian’s art waned in popularity. Desperate, he set up shop on the streets of Greenwich Village, initially trying to sell his own art, but soon drawing portraits of tourists for $15 a pop.

One customer kept returning, querying Qian about his skills. How strong is your brushwork? Can you be bold, like de Kooning? Can you recreate the passion of Pollock?

Qian relished the challenge.

With a knack for imitating the abstract expressionists, Qian set to work on painting the lost works from Rothko, Pollock, Motherwell. He sold each painting to his challenger for a few hundred dollars — modest earnings, but at least he no longer had to paint those endless Maos.

Then one day in the early 2000s, as he walked into an art show in Manhattan, something caught Qian’s eye: His painting was hanging on the wall, for sale.

Unfortunately, it was not one of his original works. It was one of his Rothkos, which had earned him a few hundred dollars. The new price tag had some additional zeros. He instantly thought,