Li Ke-Ran (1907-1989), born in Xuzhou of China’s Jiangsu Province, was a painter and poet. Li was the pupil of famous painter Qi Baishi; he specialized in landscape and character paintings — and his paintings of cows were especially lauded. Li took up an interest in painting at a young age, first learning landscape paintings at age 13. At age 16, he enrolled in the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts. At 43, he became a professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. At age 49, he revolutionized landscape paintings by blending in Western techniques with traditional Chinese painting techniques. At age 72, he served as the vice chairman of the China Artists Association and as the dean of the Research Institute of Traditional Chinese Painting. His painting style turned even bolder and unrestrained in his late years.