Born in Hefei, Anhui Province 1967, he graduated from the Art Department of Anhui Normal University, majoring in oil painting in 1990. ?In the period 1993-1995 he attended advanced studies in the Central Art Academy of Beijing.

Ye Tao made himself known with his first Shanghai Baby. Following the incredible success of this pioneer work, he decided to extend it to a whole series: ten more paintings representing the close up of a Chinese, young, desirable woman, on the background of Shanghai.? Sensuality and political references melt into the deliberate choice of details, such as the red star on military hat. Behind her, the skyline illuminated by violent neon lights seems to be dissolving under a thick and dark layer of fumes.

The artist doesn’t hide his intention to attack the current Chinese state of affairs, particularly in Shanghai, the display window of China’s new course. Here, as he states, all the conflicts between social classes, tradition and modernity, official juridical system and favoritism, are highlighted by an unrestrained ambition, particularly among the new generations of Chinese.