Xu Yong (b.1954) currently lives and works in Beijing. Originally self-taught, Xu Yong later graduated from the Luoyang Polytechnic in 1978 and became a pioneer of contemporary art in China. He was involved in initiating the Beijing 798 Art District. A photographer with more than 20 books to his credit, one of his most acclaimed photographic series is the enchanting 101 Portraits of Hutong, first published in 1989. It records the poetic charms of the traditional Beijing courtyard houses separated by narrow lanes (hutongs), neighbourhoods that were on the verge of extinction, indiscriminately demolished in China’s rush to modernise.

His photographic artworks have been exhibited internationally, including solo exhibitions in London, Germany, Swiss, Netherlands, Korea, Taiwan.