Young Chinese artist draws inspiration from ancient culture

A young Chinese artist became an overnight sensation when she presented a stunning contemporary adaptation of an ancient painting on a popular television show last weekend.

Photo by Ye Luying

The hit variety show National Treasure, which aired on China Central Television, introduced the ancient Chinese painting “Nymph of the Luo River” by Gu Kaizhi of the East Jin Dynasty (317-420) at the same time as Ye Luying's modern version in her picture book.

Her own cartoon-style “Nymph of the Luo River” amazed the audience along with the exhibited Song copy of Gu’s painting recommended by the Liaoning Provincial Museum. Many say that she perfectly combines the traditional art with modern features and has brought high-end art closer to ordinary people.

A picture from Ye Luying's picture book "Nymph of the Luo River." /Photo by Ye Luying

Gu’s painting was an inspired illustration of an essay written by Cao Zhi, a poet of China’s Three Kingdoms period (220-280), in which he depicted his imagined romantic encounter and separation with the Nymph of the Luo River. 

A talented calligrapher and painter, Gu Kaizhi is also known for his theories in Chinese painting that laid foundations for its new development, especially his emphasis on the eyes of the figures.

“The eyes were the spirit and the decisive factor in figure paintings,” Gu wrote down in his theoretical works.

Ye Luying (L) and Chen Xiao, Chinese actor, appear at the variety show "National Treasure". /Photo via Ye Luying

Ye Luying, 25, is one of the generation dubbed the “post-90s,” a reference to those who were born in the 1990s. After graduating from the Chinese Academy of Art and studying abroad, she now works as a teacher at the academy. 

While overseas she came to the conclusion that the country’s 5,000-year cultural heritage is rooted in her spirit. 

“I was so impressed by the Norse mythology that I couldn’t help wondering 'do we have such stories in China, and what are the aesthetic symbols of the Chinese',” said Ye.

The Song copy of Gu Kaizhi's painting "Nymph of the Luo River." /Photo via Liaoning Provincial Museum‍

She started to immerse herself in libraries after returning to her hometown in Hangzhou city, Zhejiang Province, until she came across with the Nymph of the Luo River again after graduation.

She said she was inspired not only by Gu Kaizhi’s painting, but also his theories of comparing lines in painting to silk. Cao Zhi’s depiction of the nymph in his essay has also provided her with numerous ideas.

From then on, Ye has dug deeper into the ancient Chinese literature and culture and was amazed by what she found out.

A picture from Ye Luying's picture book "Nymph of the Luo River." /Photo by Ye Luying

“The Chinese culture, with its long history and profound contents, is like a huge treasure to me. It has nourished my works and would continue to do so in my entire career life,” Ye said at the variety show. “I want to share the Oriental beauty with everyone.”

She spent half a year painting her picture book, which was based on the ancestors’ works but invigorated with her wild imagination.

The Song copy of Gu’s painting was 6.4 meters in length, and Ye’s manuscript is about 11 meters in general. She completed a large part of her painting on the computer.

A picture from Ye Luying's picture book "Nymph of the Luo River". /Photo by Ye Luying

“The computer has its advantage. For example, the colors would be more saturated, refreshing and are capable of presenting more layers of changes,” said Ye. “It’s an era of rapid development, with the technology leaping forward. 

“New elements should be infused into the classic artistic works.”  

Her picture book has become a rising star in the field of fine art, and has grabbed a handful of domestic awards. It was also exhibited at the Frankfurt Book Fair. 

A Ye Luying painting. /Photo by Ye Luying

Dong Baohou, painter and researcher of the Liaoning Provincial Museum, speaks highly of Ye’s painting. 

“The ‘Nymph of the Luo River’ is an important piece of work in the Chinese history of art, but it is still far away from the public. Ye has inherited the classical beauty from the ancient painting, and expressed it in a modern way, which is great,” said Dong. 

Ye’s picture book is scheduled to be published in April.

WRIGHTWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Powerful winter storms brought the wettest Christmas season to Southern California in years, sending mud and debris sliding and half-filling homes with mud.

There was still a risk of more flash flooding and mudslides Friday despite slackening rain around Los Angeles, the National Weather Service warned.

“Still not quite out of the woods, but for the most part, the worst is over," said Mike Wofford, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Los Angeles.

Firefighters rescued over 100 people Thursday in Los Angeles County, with one helicopter pulling 21 people from stranded cars, officials said. LA police also responded to more than 350 traffic collisions, the mayor's office said.

In Wrightwood, a 5,000-resident mountain town about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of Los Angeles, relentless rain this week turned the roads to rivers and buried cars up to their windows in rocks, debris and mud.

Sherry Tocco's neighborhood was devastated, she said Friday. Several homes were destroyed, but her house was spared from mud and debris.

The river was raging and “then it just came through and destroyed, took everything with it,” she said.

A shed was washed down the road, and several others were strewn about. Firefighters helped her evacuate earlier this week and she slept in her car on Christmas Eve.

Most of the town lost power and many were buying fire starters, logs and propane, said Eric Faulkner, manager of Mountain Hardware.

“My phone's been nonstop of, ‘do you have this?’ or ‘can you help me with that?’" Faulkner said outside the store while it rained Friday.

Manny Simpson, a Wrightwood resident of 14 years, said the storms were the worst he's seen. His basement was flooded, but he was still counting himself lucky.

“I've seen some other houses and I feel good about what happened to me," he said.

Fire officials rescued several people from trapped cars earlier this week when mud and debris cascaded down a road into town. There was one injury reported.

In the nearby mountain town of Lytle Creek, raging waters destroyed a bridge Wednesday, cutting off a neighborhood, resident Travis Guenther said. By Friday morning, he said, water subsided enough for people to walk across the debris.

One home had as much as 4 feet (122 centimeters) of debris piled up inside after mud blew through the front door earlier this week, Guenther said.

“The guys are still trying to stay there but they can’t shut their doors,” he said. “They were stuck inside because there was a raging river on either side of them.”

Meanwhile, forecasters say a weekend storm could bring New York City’s biggest snowfall in three years. Freezing rain was falling Friday in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and in New York, an emergency was declared for much of the state ahead of widespread snowfall expected Friday night into Saturday morning.

In Connecticut, people were encouraged to avoid travel as a winter storm approached the Northeast on Friday.

The California storms brought the wettest Christmas season to downtown Los Angeles in 54 years, the National Weather Service said. The area recorded 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of rain in three days, while areas in Ventura County saw up to 17 inches (43 centimeters).

Forecasters expected a dry weekend before more rain around New Year's Eve.

At Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, a resort southeast of Yosemite National Park, two ski patrollers were injured Friday morning in an avalanche and taken to a hospital, a resort official said. The resort has seen more than 5 feet (1.5 meters) of snow since Tuesday.

High waves were forecast and flood watches in place for parts of Northern California through Friday. Roughly 44% of flights at San Francisco airport were delayed Friday during strong winds, the airport said.

More wind and as much as 2 inches (5 centimeters) of snowfall an hour was expected in the Sierra Nevada, making mountain pass travel treacherous. Local officials rescued a backcountry skier who was buried in an avalanche Thursday near the Mount Rose ski resort on the edge of Reno.

A falling tree killed a San Diego man Wednesday, news outlets reported. Farther north, a Sacramento sheriff’s deputy died in what appeared to be a weather-related crash. Heavy rain and flash flooding earlier this week in Northern California also caused at least one death, officials said.

Associated Press writers Trân Nguyễn in Sacramento, California, Sophie Austin in Oakland, California, Jessica Hill in Las Vegas, Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut, and Michael Sisak in New York contributed.

Workers work to restore power after severe storms, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)

A car is flipped over along a storm-damaged road after a series of storms on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, near Phelan, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)

Mud covers the inside of a property after a series of storms on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)

Michelle Meyers inspects her property, buried in mud after a series of storms, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)

A car is buried in mud after a series of storms Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)