Artwork Description

Title: White Flowers in Summer
Artist: Li Jiang
Date: 2018
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 23.6 x 19.7 in (60 x 50 cm)

1. Artwork Identification:
White Flowers in Summer is a vivid, exuberant oil painting by Li Jiang that presents an animated floral arrangement accompanied by white doves in a jubilant composition. Executed with dynamic brushstrokes and bold colors, the work captures a lively sense of motion, underscored by the symbolic interplay between peace (the doves) and vitality (the blooming bouquet). The detailed tablecloth and stylized background patterning further accentuate the artist’s fusion of folk heritage with modern visual rhythm.

2. Artistic Style and Influences:
Trained under the celebrated Yunnan School founder Ting Shao Kuang, Li Jiang adopts a vibrant, highly expressive style rooted in symbolic and decorative tradition. The Yunnan School is known for its rich visual language influenced by Chinese folk art, Buddhist iconography, and Western modernism. Jiang's palette and motifs reflect a fusion of this heritage with a distinctly personal touch that emphasizes joy, abundance, and the poetry of everyday life.

3. Historical Context:
Emerging after China’s Cultural Revolution, Li Jiang belongs to the second wave of Yunnan artists who embraced artistic liberation through color, myth, and personal expression. His works reflect not only a regional identity but also a broader cultural awakening that followed a period of repression. Painted in 2018, White Flowers in Summer reveals the enduring resonance of this movement and Jiang’s continued engagement with themes of harmony, cultural memory, and renewal.

4. Provenance:
Provenance documentation can be provided upon contact.

5. Condition and Conservation:
The artwork is in very good condition. The paint surface is stable, with vibrant pigments and no noted areas of loss, cracking, or restoration. The piece is housed in a robust wooden frame that complements its composition.

6. Artistic Significance:
Li Jiang’s work stands at the crossroads of East and West, ancient and modern. White Flowers in Summer exemplifies his mastery in uniting symbolic content with visual exuberance. His contributions to the Yunnan School legacy—particularly his bold celebration of life and beauty—continue to inspire collectors and scholars alike. The present work is an outstanding representation of his artistic philosophy and is a compelling addition to collections focused on post-revolutionary Chinese modernism.