The contemporary Chinese painter Shi Qi is both an inheritor of traditional Chinese culture and a pioneer in terms of art innovation.

Shi Qi was born and raised in southeast China's Fujian Province, where he developed an interest in painting as a young child and knew that he was destined to become an acclaimed artist. In 1963, he graduated from the Xiamen Academy of Arts and Design, after which he relocated to Beijing to pursue his dream. After considerable study and practice, his painting "Winter Jasmine" was selected for China's National Exhibition of Fine Arts in 1973. Shi Qi showed a fresh and vivid style with warm and bold strokes, which resulted in him being invited to join the Beijing Fine Art Academy as a painter in 1976.

Shi Qi specialized in Chinese-style figurative art. Early in his career, he spared no effort to hone his Chinese-style painting skills. As time went by, he realized he needed to establish his own artistic style to truly convey his thoughts and make a name for himself. During a trip to Anhui Province's Jiuhua Mountain one day, Shi Qi looked at the reflection of the moon in the water and was inspired by the natural scenery to come up with his artistic concept known as "three forms in one" – a form that features figurative painting, impressionist and abstract techniques.

Finally, Shi Qi created his unique style after decades of experimentation. His work "Farewell My Concubine" is representative in its adoption of "three forms in one." He used bold strokes and vivid ink to depict this classic story, giving the paper and ink a strong emotional rhythm. Since then, Shi Qi's career took a new path. Based on this strong foundation in traditional techniques, he used his own painting language and artistic style to put a new spin on contemporary Chinese art.

Over the years, hundreds of his works have been exhibited at many large-scale art exhibitions both in China and overseas. He has been invited to Japan, Thailand, Singapore, the United States, Malaysia, South Korea and other countries to hold art exhibitions. In 2012, the Shi Qi Art Museum opened in the city of Yantai, east China's Shandong Province.

The octogenarian still loves exploring the art world and carrying the responsibility of promoting Chinese art and culture. He believes that artists and their works represent the spirit of their generation.