The striking Gulustan Residence stands tall in the midst of the monotonous architectural landscape of Baku in Azerbaijan. Even though its Art Deco-inspired glass domes and design evoke an earlier era, this luxury complex was actually built between 2005 and 2011, during a time of rapid economic growth following the opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline

In Gulustan Residence, Baku (2022), Cui Jie weaves together the building's Persian name, meaning flower garden, with a gilded, flower-shaped sculpture that references a socialist monument in Nanjing, China. The vibrant optimism of this economic boom contrasts sharply with the simplified cityscape at the bottom of the painting, which resembles an architectural sketch dotted with satellite dishes.

This work is part of a series Cui began during the pandemic, exploring significant buildings she has never visited but which share architectural features with those in her hometown of Shanghai. Her art delves into how the economic and political shifts in China from the 1980s onward have shaped urban development. These buildings, influenced by Western modernism, reflect the cultural clash that emerged when socialist China began to open to the capitalist West.