Chu Teh-chun began in the 1950s his studies of abstract paintings with inspirations from French artist Nicolas de Stael . Early on, Chu took color concepts to conjure abstract expressions and injected his own thoughts, which gradually developed into his individual style. His early work has been termed as his gemstone stage to describe the pervasive geometric shapes. His later work shifted the focused on to light, with vibrant colors and broad strokes, sprinkling jewel-like clusters that shimmer in the night sky.

Following the wintry expressions in his "Snow Scenes" series, Chu Teh-chun's work matured during the 1980s, leading to a string of exhibition invitations from art museums around the world, including one from Le Grand Palais in Paris. Painted in 1989, "Sortant de la nuit" displayed both the lushness of Chinese landscape paintings and the abstract romanticism of modern French influence, clearly revealing the artist's contemporary background.