[3] Yao gained recognition after representing Taiwan at the Venice Biennale in 1997,[4] and his work documenting abandoned public buildings has influenced government policy.

[9] Artists such as Wu Tien-chang, Mei Dean-E, and Yao Jui-Chung focused on re-evaluating Taiwan's history, language, and local culture.

[4] In 1994, Yao placed an advertisement in a local arts magazine proclaiming that he would "Attack and Occupy Taiwan," and proceeded to photograph himself urinating at various sites around the island associated with Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese colonialism.

[14] Other so-called "action" works include World is For All (1997–2000) which deals with the Chinese diaspora and Chinatowns around the world, Long March (2002) which re-visits locations of the Red Army's military retreat,[3] as well as Liberating Taiwan (2007), which is based on military propaganda posters and features Yao dressed as a Chinese Red Army soldier floating in front of models of famous landmarks.

[4] Five artists were selected for the Taiwan Pavilion at the 1997 Venice Biennale, among them Chen Chien-pei, Lee Ming-tse, Wang Jun-jieh, Wu Tien-chang, and Yao Jui-Chung.

[11] The series Long Live (2011) highlights abandoned military installations,[20][21] Incarnation (2016–2022) documents religious statues,[12] and Hell Plus (2018–2019) features instant film photos of Taoist or Buddhist dioramas depicting purgatory.

[22] For a project titled LSD – Lost Society Documentation, Yao together with over one hundred students from local universities photographed some 300 so-called "mosquito halls" (abandoned public buildings) across Taiwan.

[4] At an arts residency at Glenfiddich distillery in 2007, Yao began a series of drawings deconstructing Chinese Shan shui painting, using fine point oil pen on handmade paper with gold leaf to create colorful landscapes that include both contemporary and autobiographical elements.

[36] Yao's solo exhibition Republic of Cynic (2020) at Taiwan Contemporary Culture Lab featured video and installations touching on historical events from Apollo 11 to Tank Man.