Plants and Insects in Autumn

Li Di was active from the Northern to Southern Song period as a court artist in the Painting Academy. He specialized in bird-and-flower, insect-and-grass, and dog-and-cat subjects, being an outstanding painter at the early Southern Song court in bird-and-flower and rock-and-bamboo themes. This small work shows the leafy tips of some plants, on which a praying mantis raises its forelimbs in an apparent attempt to catch a beetle that has just flown away before becoming its next meal. The praying mantis, empty-handed, appears to look back at the beetle almost with a sense of dejection. This life-and-death moment in the insect world, shown in the contrast between pursuit and flight, is vividly captured by the painter to create tension in a serene setting. The delicate variations of hues in the painting, as well as the sensory appeal of plants and insects in this intimate scene, fully express the painter's stylistic tradition in terms of the coloring and qualities sought in the Northern Song painting academy of Emperor Huizong (reigned 1101-1125).