Only after failing in his pursuit of a government career did Li Fangying dedicate himself to painting as a means of survival. His love of blossoming plum was such that he named his studio the Plum Blossom Tower; it was there, in 1743, that he painted this image of his favorite flower along with bamboo and a rock. For Li and failed scholars like him, the plum blossom that blooms in spite of the winter chill provided a powerful model of perseverance.