Art Beijing drew more than 80,000 visitors last year, not just from the art world but also ordinary citizens.[Photo provided to China Daily]

Realizing the difficulties of surviving as a professional artist in the 1990s, he landed jobs at companies that organized cultural events, including performances and art exhibitions, as he also wanted to learn about how to educate people to appreciate art.

He worked for three years with China International Gallery Exposition, a leading art fair in China, before he left it to establish Art Beijing.

About 60 galleries attended the first fair, far less than the 100 booths that had been offered by the organizing committee.

This year the fair received more than 300 applications.

Speaking of the scrutiny process, he says: "The standards have never changed. We want to present quality galleries, quality works and quality artists that can show people that China is producing good art and up-and-coming artists."