The remarkable plein air paintings of Liu Xiaodong b.1963 which chronicle everyday lives within our diverse modern world are the focus of this first monograph of his career to date. Immersing himself in communities around the globe Xiaodong seeks to present people who often sit on the fringes of society who find themselves marginalised within a contemporary world striving for homogenisation. At first glance a traditional realist painter closer examination reveals an artist exploring a range of m