The man covering Beijing in 100 dragons

One of Qi Xinghua's street artworks in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Though he is new to street art, Qi is far from an artistic novice. He graduated from the prestigious Chinese Academy of Fine Arts in 2005.

While studying at the academy, Qi came across the work of 3D sidewalk chalk artist Julian Beever, and he was transfixed by it.

"We had never seen anything like that art form in China before. It seemed unimaginable," he says.

For the next ten years, Qi devoted himself to mastering the reverse-perspective style able to create the mind-bending optical illusions of 3D art, and he began to take the form to a new level in terms of scale and ambition.

From 2010 to 2011, Qi broke the Guinness World Record for the largest 3D mural four times, his enormous works reportedly inducing vertigo in some viewers.

But despite his success, Qi began to feel increasingly frustrated by the limitations of 3D art's technical, rather formalistic style.

"The 3D works gave full play to my ability, but they didn't allow me to express my feelings. This year, I realized I needed a change," he says.

If Qi was initially worried about potential brushes with the law at the start of his street art career, he had little need to be.

As shown in the documentary Spray Paint Beijing, detained street artists are rarely given more than a night in jail and a small fine in China.

Qi often paints for hours in broad daylight and has never got into trouble.