Li Di
Master of detailed Southern Song bird-and-flower painting
Li Di (1100–1197) was a painter during the Southern Song dynasty, from Heyang (today’s Mengzhou, Henan Province), and of Han ethnicity. He specialized in painting flowers, birds, bamboo, stones, eagles, hawks, dogs, cats, cattle, and pheasants, and was strong in sketching from life. He also occasionally painted small landscape scenes, following the style of Li Tang, with exquisite compositions, profound skill, and majestic scenes that could truly move people. His surviving works include 'Maple, Eagle and Pheasant', 'Chicks Await Feeding', 'Homeward Herd in Wind and Rain', and 'Snowy Trees and Cold Birds', all characterized by detailed depictions and distinctive expressions. During the Northern Song's Xuanhe era, he served as a loyal painter in the imperial painting academy. In the Southern Song, during the Shaoxing reign, he was reappointed as deputy director of the painting academy and served under Emperors Xiaozong, Guangzong, and Ningzong, being active in the court painting academy for several decades. He painted 'Homeward Herd in Wind and Rain' in 1174 (the first year of Chunxi), 'Snowy Trees and Cold Birds' in 1187 (the 14th year of Chunxi), and completed 'Maple, Eagle and Pheasant', 'Chicks Await Feeding', and 'Hunting Dogs' during the Qingyuan era. His son, Li Demao, continued the family style and served as a court painter during the reign of Emperor Lizong.