Pauline Yao is a curator, writer, and winner of "best critic" at the Chinese Contemporary Art Awards, (CCAA). Based in Beijing and San Francisco, Pauline Yao previously worked as Assistant Curator of Chinese Art at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and Senior Lecturer in the Graduate Program at California College of Arts, San Francisco. In 2006 she received a Fulbright Grant to research contemporary art in China. Ms Yao Serves on the editorial board of Yishu Art Journal and Contemporary Art and Investment. She also co-founded the alternative art space the Arrow Factory, Beijing. She received her MA in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from the University of Chicago.