With the opening of the Beijing Olympic Games, the 798 Art District has opened its arms to embrace tourists from all around the world. Our journalist paid the art zone a visit in the midnight and captured its artistic scene.

The 798 Art District, China's premier hub of contemporary art, is often described as a bohemian oasis. It was transformed from a deserted 1950s-era factory zone with galleries, cafes, bookstores, outdoor sculptures and graffiti on the walls.

The art zone, which was pioneered by artists in the late 1990s, covers 230,000 square meters in the eastern Dashanzi neighborhood. It was originally known as Factory 798 in honor of the official code number of the munitions factory that occupied the site for half a century.

Most photos from the "798" were taken in the daytime, but very few of them revealed the dark side of the district. Let's step in with our journalist to go deep into the darkness of the "798".

Road 797 (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

A Corner in the 798 Art District (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

Expressionism (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

The Back of Post-Industrial Society (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

Diogenes' Sunshine (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

Say Hi to the Blue Mood (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)

Silent Movie (People's Daily online Photo/Zhenyu Li)