Painting an image of the past

The four friends were classmates at the Fine Arts Department of Yuxi Normal University, and they opened a wall painting company together after graduation. The business was still new in Yuxi in 2009. The four believed that there was a demand in the market. "When you are young, you must dare to try things out and make mistakes. It is best to turn your hobby into a career," says Wang.

They have worked together for 13 years, during which time the team has painted 20,000 square meters of walls, and nearly 2,000 works are spread over Yuxi's town streets, community squares, parks and campuses. The lifelike works are popular and orders are streaming in.

"Some people call us 'urban beauticians', 'wall painters' and 'street artists'. These titles are very pleasant, to be honest. We are perfectionists, and we strive to paint the best for each work," Wang says.

"If the renovation of an old community is described as a family renovating a house, painting on the wall is 'soft decoration'," says He Xiao, deputy director of the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau of Eshan county.