Art Beijing drew more than 80,000 visitors last year, not just from the art world but also ordinary citizens.[Photo provided to China Daily]

The original stock of tickets for last year's show sold out within the first two days, and Dong says they had to print more after more people wanted to visit the show after seeing photos of eye-catching artworks on social media services Weibo and WeChat.

"At first, I felt that the ticket price at 100 yuan was quite expensive, and I worried whether people would buy them," Dong tells China Daily.

But he says the people's enthusiasm showed that they had realized that Art Beijing was not only for professionals－artists, dealers and collectors－but it was a place where people could see artworks that are different from those displayed in public museums.

At this year's fair, there will be more than 160 galleries and institutions from home and abroad displaying contemporary works, classic pieces, designs and public sculptures. The exhibits will be placed around the exhibition center's former Soviet-style building, its latest exposition venues and also its public spaces.

A graduate of printing art from the prestigious Central Academy of Fine Arts, Dong did not become a full-time artist like many of his famed teachers and schoolmates such as Xu Bing and Fang Lijun.