Two years ago, works from 40 celebrated artists from across the world were displayed in Wuzhen, a water town in East China's Zhejiang province, giving locals and tourists to the small town a sense of what contemporary art is.

The second edition of the Wuzhen Contemporary Art Exhibition will open next March and is expected to help broaden people's minds about the new trends in contemporary art, according to the team of curators.

Feng Boyi, who leads the team, says that next year's show will feature the work of 45 artists from 21 countries, all of whom are active in the international contemporary art world. The list includes British visual artist Julian Opie, Japanese architect Kazuyo Sejima and Argentine artist Amalia Ulman, who is known for her internet art.

The silk-factory area in Wuzhen (pictured above, middle) will display works by artists from across 21 countries at the second edition of the Wuzhen Contemporary Art Exhibition curated by Feng Boyi (left). Zhuang Hui (right), a Chinese artist, will create a wooden installation for the show. Photos Provided to China Daily

Feng was also a curator for the first edition in 2016. It highlighted pieces from such famous artists as Damien Hirst; Florentijn Hofman, who made a giant pink fish for Wuzhen; and Marina Abramovic, dubbed the "godmother of performance art" by the media. Feng explains that next year's exhibition will try to feature artists of different styles.

For instance, organizers have invited 29-year-old Amalia Ulman, who is the youngest of the 45 artists to participate. She rose to fame due to controversies surrounding her work.

"We want to let tourists and locals see what is happening in the contemporary art world. The artworks must be varied in style," says Feng of their selection of artists for the show.

More than a dozen artists will make special pieces for the Wuzhen exhibition. Their works will be shown in different environments: the ancient water town area, a silk factory, a granary area and a village.