Art education
28 stories
From Ithaca to Imperial China: Power, Trust, and the Choices That Shape a Dynasty
Reflections inspired by Christopher Nolan’s 2026 film The Odyssey and Xiang Li’s Chinese Empresses collection.
July 28, 2026 · Fei Wu · 20 min read
From Studio Walls to Museum Shelves: Your Playbook for Publishing a Fine Art Coffee Table Book
How a collection of paintings can travel from an artist’s studio, through a laptop screen, into the hands of readers, collectors, and museum visitors.
June 8, 2026 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 7 min read
A Meaningful Day at the Davis Museum: Silk Painting, Conservation, and Community
On April 8, 2026, we had the honor of attending “Immortalizing Magu: The Conservation of a Chinese Painting” at the Davis Museum at Wellesley College.
May 5, 2026 · Fei Wu · 6 min read
Three Worlds, One Artform: Understanding Cloisonné
From imperial courts to global markets, a quiet reflection on how intention shapes art.
April 3, 2026 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 8 min read
Art Is Love: What Bad Bunny’s Performance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show Reminded Me Of Community, Culture, and Showing Up As Ourselves
There are moments when art stops being something you visit and becomes something you feel in your body.
February 12, 2026 · Fei Wu · 4 min read
Phoenix Art Museum, Cloisonné, and a Brushstroke Through Chinese History
Introduction I didn’t expect Phoenix, Arizona to give me a deeper connection to China’s imperial past, but that’s exactly what happened.
January 23, 2026 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 6 min read
When the Empresses Come Home: Discovering Chinese Art at the Davis Museum at Wellesley College
Walking through the Davis Museum at Wellesley College, I didn’t feel like I was simply visiting a gallery.
December 22, 2025 · Fei Wu · 7 min read
More Than a Museum: How the Davis Museum at Wellesley Teaches Us How to See
Walking into the Davis Museum at Wellesley College, I expected to see beautiful art.
December 22, 2025 · Fei Wu · 5 min read
The Quiet Power of Scholar’s Rocks in Chinese Art: From the Sculptures of Zhan Wang to the Paintings of Xiang Li
When we admire Xiang Li’s magnificent Chinese Empresses or her calming Guanyin paintings, we’re often captivated first by the shimmering silks, jeweled headdresses, phoenix wings, and mythical creatures that sweep across the canvas.
November 4, 2025 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 4 min read
WooBox: Empresses of the Northern Song Arrive in Downtown Worcester
If you’ve driven through downtown Worcester recently, you may have spotted something a little unexpected, a utility box wrapped in silk-inspired elegance, crowned with dragons, peacocks, and empresses.
May 28, 2025 · Fei Wu · 3 min read
Honored at the Massachusetts State House: Celebrating Creative Individual Grant
Today, May 19, 2025, was a day I’ll never forget. My mother, Xiang Li, was honored at the Massachusetts State House as a recipient of the Mass Cultural Council’s Creative Individual Grant.
May 20, 2025 · Fei Wu · 3 min read
Art is Love: Xiang Li Art at Holy Cross Prior Performing Arts Center
On a crisp November evening in 2024, something unforgettable unfolded in Worcester, Massachusetts.
May 20, 2025 · Fei Wu · 3 min read
The Power of Culture: What I Learned at the Worcester County State of the Arts Convening
On May 14, 2025, I had the privilege of attending the Worcester County State of the Arts Convening at the beautiful Chocksett Inn in Sterling, MA.
May 15, 2025 · Fei Wu · 3 min read
Flowers of Power: Discovering Symbolism in Xiang Li’s Chinese Empress Collection
Flowers have always held deep symbolic meanings throughout Chinese history, playing important roles in art, culture, and even imperial politics.
March 26, 2025 · Fei Wu · 3 min read
Lunar New Year Celebration with Xiang Li’s Chinese Empress Paintings at Worcester Art Museum
Stepping into the Medieval Chapter House at the Worcester Art Museum (WAM) on Sunday, January 26, for the museum’s Lunar New Year celebration felt like entering another world.
January 30, 2025 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 3 min read
Xiang Li’s Interpretive Paintings of Song Dynasty’s “Song Ren Ce Ye”
Introduction This past week, I once again had the privilege of visiting the studio of artist Xiang Li in Grafton, Massachusetts.
January 21, 2025 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 6 min read
Tracing Artistic Legacies: Qing Dynasty Artifacts at the Victoria and Albert Museum and Xiang Li’s Chinese Empresses
During my recent visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum (V & A) in London, a serendipitous turn of events led me to the Asian art gallery, where I found myself face-to-face with an extraordinary collection of Qing dynasty artifacts.
November 19, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 7 min read
Xiang Li Art: Bridging Tradition and Modernity in Chinese Painting
After publishing the previous article Exploring the Spectrum of Art for You: From Classical to Contemporary, we received a popular follow-up question: “Where does Xiang Li Art fall in the art category? How does these art categories change for Chinese art?”
September 11, 2024 · Fei Wu · 2 min read
Exploring the Spectrum of Art for You: From Classical to Contemporary
Art has been an integral part of human culture for millennia, evolving and diversifying into numerous styles and movements.
September 10, 2024 · Fei Wu · 5 min read
Xiang Li’s Revolutionary Approach to Chinese Empress Portraits: Traditional, Modern, or Both?
Xiang Li, a master artist with 37 years of experience at the Forbidden City in Beijing, has crafted a unique artistic style that seamlessly blends traditional Chinese watercolor techniques with contemporary sensibilities.
September 10, 2024 · Fei Wu · 4 min read
Xiang Li’s Art of Storytelling Through Creative Watercolor Portraits
My fascination with Xiang Li’s artwork began after seeing a special set of creative portraits in her studio.
July 3, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 6 min read
Chinese Empresses Paintings Collection Premieres at JMAC, Worcester MA
I am writing this blog post about Xiang Li’s Chinese Empresses collection paintings and the art show’s opening reception at JMAC (Jean McDonough Arts Center) in downtown Worcester on Friday, May 31.
June 3, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 5 min read
Studying the Cixi Portrait at the Harvard Art Museum (2024)
There is a famous portrait of Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908 Qing Dynasty) at the Harvard Art Museum in Cambridge MA. A.k.a the Cixi Portrait.
May 20, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 7 min read
Dream of the Red Chamber: The First Complete Art Collection Created by Visionary Watercolor Artist Xiang Li (400+ Paintings)
Welcome to Dream of the Red Chamber, by Xiang Li. Among the novel’s many admirers is Xiang Li, whose dedication to this classic has left an indelible mark on the art world in China.
March 26, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 4 min read
The Five Most Influential Chinese Empresses
For this blog post, we are focusing on the five MOST influential Chinese Empresses who had a decisive impact on Chinese history.
February 25, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 6 min read
The Science and Art of the Chinese Watercolor Paint: Gemstone, Mineral and Plant Colors
Did you know that traditional Chinese watercolor paints are made of gemstone, mineral and plants?
February 16, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 5 min read
A Comprehensive Guide to Mythical Creatures in Chinese Paintings
I wrote this article to help us begin to understand the meanings of several mythical creatures in Chinese paintings. All of them are used by Xiang Li commonly across all her paintings.
February 11, 2024 · Tripti Gore Chandorkar · 8 min read
How to Think, Explore and Learn as an Artist
After teaching Chinese watercolor to numerous Chinese and American students over the past 40 years, we’d love to discuss the subject of How to Think, Explore and Learn when it comes to Chinese watercolor art.
May 26, 2023 · Fei Wu · 5 min read