Xu Xinping is a watercolor artist. He is also a son-in-law of Pingtan and the deputy secretary-general of the Pingtan Artists Association. Pingtan is an island off E China’s Fujian province as well as the closest place on the mainland to the island of Taiwan.

Xu said the island overpowered him in 2010 when he first landed. He was captivated by the distinctive customs and the ecological environment, which has become the source of inspiration for many of his works.

He said Pingtan is extremely attractive to an artist. Watercolor paintings are the best form of expression that brings out the island's beauty. So whenever he was idle, he would drive around to collect clues, take pictures, and pull over to paint.

Later, Xu married Huang Xiujuan, a native girl of Pingtan who is also an artist. Xu settled down in Pingtan and took Pingtan as his second hometown.

Xu jokingly said, “My name is Xinping which can be rendered as a “new Pingtan resident” in Chinese. It seems as if there is a fateful connection with Pingtan.”

Xu said that he likes Pingtan’s fishing boats very much for their primitiveness. [Fishing boats by Xu Xinping]

His creation Dried Fish collection was awarded the top honor at the New Artists and New Works Exhibition in Fujian in 2018.

The work Pingtan Strait Rail-Road Bridge was selected for the 7th Fujian Provincial Arts Festival and won the highest Excellence Award in 2018.

In 2018, Xu and his wife Huang Xiujuan worked together to create a commendable "Maotouqian Hand-painted Map" that stretched out to 1.2 meters with a width of about 0.9 meters. Maotouqian, an idyllic resort in Pingtan came alive under the couple’s brushes.

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