Li Xuan’s paintbrush speaks of his master’s lifelong ambition to strike a balance between the art styles of the East and the West, while inspiring intricate dark landscapes that portray the heavenly bodies of the night sky. Throughout his life, Li Xuan pursued this artistic angle of integration in his ambitions and this achievement netted him his signature style that sets his work apart from conventional contemporary artists of his time. To accomplish his quest, Li Xuan married the fluid strokes used in writing traditional Chinese calligraphy with the compositional structure of Western abstraction. His unique talent to blend traditional Eastern ink wash drawings with Western methods finely depicts the majestic lakes and ruggedness of mountains awash with minute details of ledges and crevasses that resemble the heavens and milky galaxies on his canvas. Born in Beijing, China on July 1, 1941, Mr. Li began painting at the young age of 8 years old, developing his natural talents as he grew older. His artistic talents were also recognized when he became the art editor for Taiyuan Daily newspaper and he would hold audiences captive with his skills to create comic books, Chinese paintings, oil paintings, watercolours and sculpture. His artistic drive would further lead him to the Taiyuan Ancient Architecture Group, where, after establishing the Group’s newspaper, he joined the team to preserve the beautiful art of heritage buildings in 1986. Not long afterwards he opened his first gallery, Yuzhi Gallery Studio, in 1990, and he gave himself over to painting full-time, fulfilling his soul’s desire to capture his visions of balancing these two distinct styles. Li Xuan would keep a record of his creations and he published his first personal collection of his paintings in 2010, before passing away a year later in his studio. This publication would serve to feature his most treasured paintings, imbued with his personal expressions and energy that have captivated art admirers from both sides of the Pacific. Today, Li Xuan’s paintings continue to draw and capture new audiences of discerning art enthusiasts to his unique personal style, and many have found their way into art collections of organizations and individuals worldwide. Li Xuan’s paintings are being exhibited at numerous galleries internationally, and in 2018 and 2022, a series of his paintings was exhibited at the Art Vancouver exhibition. His artwork is represented by True Colour Gallery in North Vancouver, Canada, which is operated by his daughter, Ms. Lily Li.

Artist