Ying Li
There is a recent interview and audio podcast with Chinese artist Ying Li at the wonderful blog Painting Perceptions.
She grew up in China during the Cultural Revolution and was sent to the countryside to work on a farm. Later, because of her skill and love for drawing, she was trained as an artist. Even after entering college, she had to take military training and spend time working in a factory.
She was eventually assigned to teach art at the university where she had been a student. One day, while painting outdoors, she met an American scholar of Modern Chinese History. They corresponded and then applied for permission to get married. After she came to live in the States, she was impressed by our art museums and jazz music. She attended Parson's School of Design, and her painting style changed radically.
These days, she primarily paints from observation outdoors. "When you’re outside painting it’s like wow! What am I going to do? Where to start? What to choose? Right away you’re just thrown into this chaos and light changes so quickly, you have to make your decision constantly and quick. I love that kind of challenge. I react better and it keeps me on my toes."
Shown here are three (8"x10") paintings from her 2015 Window Series.
Sarah Judson
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