Han Lei emerged in the late 1980s as one of the pioneers of documentary photography in China.

His first solo exhibition in 1995, titled Alienation, featured fifty black-and-white photographs of street life taken throughout different parts of China, training the camera's lens on subjects who are often isolated or socially marginalized. In the late 1990s, Han's photography took a turn toward the nostalgic with his two series of lyrical, romanticized images set in soft, circular frames. Fictional Landscapes (1998–2003) evokes misty landscapes reminiscent of classical Chinese ink paintings, while Fictional Portraits consists of photographs of women depicted in old photographs. Hand-painted to cast a veil of timelessness over these atmospheric views, Han conceived of these pictures as "memory images," intent on recreating a particular mood or feeling. Drawing on his own memories, Han uses personal mementos in his colorful Pagoda series (2005–6) to stage dramatically lit, elaborate still-life compositions that play on and tease the conventions of this revered genre. More recently, Han is experimenting with the forgotten process of lenticular printing to create photographs with a novel impression of depth and sense of animation.

Born in Kaifeng, Henan province, in 1967, Han graduated from the Central Academy of Craft and Design, Beijing, in 1989. Solo exhibitions of his work have been presented at M97 Gallery, Shanghai; Mangee Art Gallery, Madrid; Hanart TZ Gallery, Hong Kong; Gallery LOFT, Paris; and 798 Photo Gallery, Beijing; among others. He has also participated in numerous international and domestic group exhibitions and festivals including the Lianzhou International Photo Festival; Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing; Rencontres Internationales Paris/Berlin; Guan Shanyue Art Museum, Shenzhen; Gwangju Museum of Art; Guangdong Museum of Art; Prague International Museum; Hong Kong Arts Center; and other venues. His work is held in collections such as the Guy & Myriam Ullens Foundation, Switzerland; and Three Shadows Photography Art Center; among others. He currently lives and works in Beijing, Zhengzhou, and Hong Kong.

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