The author explores contemporary Chinese aesthetics from multi-disciplinary points of view, by which Chinese culture is decoded through a matrix of different subject matters, including literature, architecture, fashion, advertising, music, painting and film.  The collection of events and individuals that constitute the general picture of Chinese aesthetics in this book can be taken as a microcosm of the greater cultural phenomena in searching for a master narrative of contemporary China. Li Xiaodong teaches modern history of architecture and architectural design at the Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore.