Yin Xu

Biography

As a Curator at Fenny Fine Arts, Yin oversees exhibition planning and execution. She is responsible for communicating with domestic and foreign museums, understanding the needs of all parties, and then matching museums with suitable needs, planning proposals, and starting exhibition-based exchanges between the two sides.

Between 2023 and 2025, Yin worked with the V&A to coordinate a China tour of an exhibition about William Morris and the British Arts and Crafts Movement. The exhibition launched at the Nanjing Museum in May 2023, and has been extended to run until 2026. The exhibition will be showcased at a total of 7 venues across China, including the Nanjing Museum, Guangdong Museum, Hebei Museum, and Tsinghua University Art Museum (among others). During the exhibition, Yin contributed in the publication of the catalogue and the production of souvenirs. Additionally, Yin led the development of exhibition-themed cultural and creative products, participated in exhibition promotion and public events, and further facilitated exchange between collaborating museums.

More recent and upcoming projects from Yin include:

September 2024 – “ENCOUNTERING WHANG TONG” Exhibition: Canton Trade, Botanical Paintings and Cultural Exchange in the 18th-19th Century. This exhibition was a collaboration between Fenny Fine Arts International Co. and the Oak Spring Garden Foundation & Library (USA) – commencing its China tour in September 2024, and exhibited at the Guangzhou Maritime Museum, Qingzhou Museum, and China Garden Museum. Yin organised and executed the exhibition – overseeing development of supporting cultural and creative products, leading promotional initiatives, and strengthening institutional ties between the Chinese venues and the U.S. collaborative partner.

January 2025 – “The Land of the Sun: Treasures of Iranian Culture and Art” Exhibition. A government-led collaborative project between China and Iran, both countries’ government agencies designated Fenny Fine Arts International Co. as the official cooperation and implementation institution. Yin played a key role in coordinating cross-border communications, managing exhibition execution, developing themed cultural and creative items, and driving cultural exchange between China and Iran through public engagement activities.

December 2025 – “Luminous Thousand Years: Kuwait Royal Collection of Art Exhibition”. A collaboration between Chinese museums and Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah (Kuwait) which will embark on a two-year tour across China. Yin is leading the preliminary planning, institutional coordination, and development of cultural and creative products for the exhibition.

2026 – “Wedgwood: Artists and Industry” Exhibition (upcoming collaboration with the V&A).

Yin previously worked as a Curator and the Director at the Museum Square Culture and Art in Beijing, and though she no longer works in a state-owned department, she still tries to promote museum exchanges in a more active and flexible way, driving more museums to participate in international cooperation, and bring more beautiful art enjoyment to audiences at home and abroad.

Yin’s dream for museums of the future is for museums to be more inclusive, interactive, and community focused. She envisions museums that showcase diverse stories, histories, and perspectives – where people of all backgrounds can see themselves represented. Interactive exhibits with emerging technologies like augmented reality and AI can make visiting museums an engaging, personalized experience. Community involvement is key, and she dreams of museums partnering with local schools, arts groups, non-profits, etc. to be hubs for learning and exchange. Museums could host community events, crowdsource local history or art projects, provide spaces for public dialogue on social issues, and give people a platform to share their cultures. Fundamentally, she hopes museums continue broadening access to arts, culture, and knowledge for all. With creativity and innovation, museums can keep evolving into even more democratic, participatory institutions of the future.

At the British Museum
During her time on the International Training Programme in 2011, Yin Xu was based in the Department of Asia and her partner place was spent at Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums in Newcastle.

In 2011 participants were asked to develop a proposal for a small temporary exhibition using an object from the British Museum’s collections.  Yin’s exhibition project proposal was entitled Next Station China: The Trade Express Between Europe and the Orient.

Legacy projects
In 2021 Yin, working with her colleague Shi Wanghuan (China, ITP Fellow 2016), was granted an ITP Research Grant to support the translation and editing of Museum Registration Methods which they aim to share with museums across China.