Tao Lengyue also known by his courtesy name Yongshao and literary names Hongzhai, Wuliuhouren, and Kemengdaoren, was born in Suzhou, Jiangsu province. In the 1930s, he worked as a professor and the dean of the Department of Art at National Jinan University; he also taught at the Department of Art at Henan University and National Sichuan University; together with Xie Gongzhan and Lv Fengzi, he founded Nanjing College of Arts. From 1932 and on, he settled down in Shanghai, where he served as a researcher of The Shanghai Research Institute of Culture and History and a member of the Shanghai branch of China Artists Association. Tao specialized in painting mountains, water, flowers, beasts, and fishes and was particularly famous for his moon night scenes which featured a combination of Chinese and Western art.