Mr. Joey F. Ellis prefers many names such as Joey, Zhou-Yi, Yousef or José, for within each one lays a identity that he has developed in the culture where that name evolved from. He is a native of Auburn, New York.
He is an alumnus of both the Putney School and Alfred University and received his BFA in Beijing from the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), becoming its first American graduate. In 2015, he graduated with an MSc in cultural heritage studies and conservation science at UCL Qatar, part of University College London’s inaugural class.
Joey’s work has been exhibited extensively throughout Asia and North America and is in numerous private collections. He has received several site-specific commissions, including from Greenpeace, Bank of America, Chevron, and Manulife, and his work has been featured in such publications as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Time and Newsweek. He is a recipient of the 2010 TEDGlobal Fellowship and was selected by the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum as one of 40 under 40, a major exhibition highlighting the work of forty artists born since 1972.