Born in 1963 in Jincheng, Liaoning province, Liu Xiaodong received professional art training throughout his high school, undergraduate and postgraduate days in the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He has been teaching in his alma mater since 1994.

Unlike other leading contemporary Chinese artists who focus on expressive symbols and concepts, Liu focuses on the most ordinary people.

Liu is best known for his on-site painting, in which he goes to an actual site and paints people who are already there, instead of inviting models to a painting studio.