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Though Han was not born in China, he says that he has inherited some good traditional Chinese values from his parents, who came from Beijing and Shanghai, especially the virtue of working hard.

"When you see China's development during the past 20 or 30 years, you have never seen such huge economic growth," he says. "It's really about working hard and sacrifice."

Business comes naturally because of his family's tradition. Together with his artistic career, Han has been a foreign exchange adviser to Frema Invest SA, a private asset management company in Lugano, Switzerland, since 1985. In 1989, he was extensively involved in the sale of the family company in Italy. Three years later, he became the managing director of an Italian real estate firm.

In 2000, he became a founding partner of a private Swiss bank in Zurich and a board member. In 2001, he was elected chairman of the board of the bank, one of the very few cases of a foreigner approved by the Swiss Federal Banking Commission as a private bank head. In 2003, he joined Blue Oak Capital Ltd in London as a partner and member of the board of directors.

Like many businessmen, Han travels extensively. In the past year, he spent much of his time in Beijing because he is optimistic about China, both in the business and art worlds.

"In business, it's really not a spiritual world. One must be very practical. At the same time, if you do things properly, people do respect that," he says.

"I don't think it's necessary for one to be successful all the time because no one can be. You just try the best you can."