Yangkun Shi was born in 1991, Henan province, China. After undergraduate study in journalism, he earned a Master Degree in Photography from University of the Arts London in 2017. From the onset of his career, Shi has worked simultaneously as a photojournalist and a visual artist.

His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally in various art institutions, including the Shanghai Center of Photography, Zhejiang Art Museum, and Dunedin Fine Art Center. His work has been featured in TIME, Artsy, LensCulture and South China Morning Post. His production has received many awards including PHMuseum Photography Grant, PDN Emerging Photographer, TOP20 Chinese Contemporary Photographer and the First Prize of UrbanPhotoFest Open. He is also a fellow of the Magnum Foundation in 2019.