ABOUT TMT

TMT, standing for Transpersonal Making Team, is the collaborative painting unity of Ben Shepard and Job Zheng. The core idea is derived from the concept of expanded consciousness or the "third mind" in transpersonal psychology.

The Artists

Beyond the alias of TMT, Ben Shepard and Job Zheng are life partners and also perform as the duo "Cozheng Wissenkunst Office".

Currently based in Catania, Sicily, TMT's work has been exhibited in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Shanghai, Beijing, and Berlin.

Ben Shepard

Ben Shepard (b. 1984), the initiator of TMT, graduated from the University of Chicago in 2008. Since 2013, he has been creating collaborative paintings with New York-based artist Drew Beattie (drewbeattie.studio) as "DBBS". Their work has been exhibited in New York (Purple Cycle One, The Chimney, 2015), Constance (Office Riot, Lachenmann Art, 2018), and Frankfurt (Office Riot, 2019).

Job Zheng

Job Zheng began collaborating with Ben in 2016. He graduated from Zhejiang University of Communication in 2019 and has been studying at the University of Arts in Berlin since 2021. Job is also a researcher in Chinese Art History and worked as an assistant researcher for the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (2022-2024).