Kan Xuan was born in Xuancheng in the Anhui Province in Eastern China in 1972. She graduated from the China Art Academy in Hangzhou in the Zhejian province in 1997.

Kan Xuan is a Chinese contemporary visual artist who experiments with various types of media including painting, photography, and video installation. Having worked extensively in the Netherlands, her work indicates some exposure to international experience and influence. Although Kan works with various types of media including painting, performance art, and photography, she is best known for her video installations and is considered an important female video artists in China. Her work aims to illuminate the rarely noticed feelings and emotions of the everyday. To Kan, video works like a diary, recording everyday experiences objectively and fully. Her recent work includes body-oriented performances and image transformation. Though the images appear simple, Kan argues simplicity is a form of freedom and directness is a vehicle for understanding life.