Environmental art is a new, multi-disciplinary subject that involves art, urban design, architecture, gardening, sculpture, industrial design, fresco and tourism, etc. With the application of plants, water, stone, steel and lighting, environmental art assimilates the specific cultural and historical features of a place to create a more colorful and varied work space.

The emergence of environmental art in China has its own special connotations. Chinese environmental art is not only confined within the notion of environmental design in the sense of architecture, but also differs from "environmental art" of the West. Generally speaking, Chinese environmental art implicates a strong flavor of everyday life and emphasizes the actual application.

The notion of modern environmental art first appeared in China in the mid-1980s. Consequently, environmental art departments were set up at a considerable number of art and architecture universities, and some cities also began attaching importance to environmental art in terms of municipal design and outlook. After several discussions, people began to gain an increasing appreciation for environmental art. The environment that we live in can only be protected, improved or created with the extensive participation of the public. The famous architect Chen Zhihua thought that environmental art should not only be limited within the boundaries of very few grand occasions, but should transcend every corner of our everyday lives. Environmental art is a kind of art for life, but not an art for memorials or museums.

Chinese cities experienced great developments in the sense of modernization since the reform and opening up, but, on the other hand, the construction cluster of blocks and streets, as well as squares are to some extent similar in style but not in harmony with the surrounding subjects. This problem becomes even more apparent in some cities with long cultural traditions. With the improvement of people's lives, as the requirement for a better and more harmonious environment increases, the development of Chinese environmental art will satisfy this increasingly urgent need.

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