Chinese tycoon Jack Ma’s palette-knife talents earn him place among nation’s most successful living artists

Jack Ma, founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, has been recognised for having another string to his bow – as a painter.

He has made the latest list of the “most successful Chinese living artists” thanks to a painting he collaborated on for charity, which was sold at auction in Hong Kong for HK$42.2 million in 2015.

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Ma’s first oil on canvas painting, titled Paradise, was rated the fourth most expensive work by Chinese living artists, according to the 2016 Hurun Art List, ranking the most successful Chinese artists alive.

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The list was published on Thursday by the Shanghai-based luxury publisher, Hurun Report.

Ma’s surprise inclusion is the result of his collaboration on a painting with Zeng Fanzhi, one of China’s leading contemporary artists.

The artwork showing an unfocused image of the earth, has a diameter of 79.6 centimetres.

Ma, who is known to collect art, and Zeng used palette knives to scrape the thick paint used to depict the planet.

It was meant to rouse the world’s attention to the need for environment protection, Ma wrote in the auction catalogue.