Li Rui (1929) is from Lufeng, Guangdong Province. As a child, his father taught him drawing. From 1943 on, he sold his paintings all over the region. In the period 1949-1952, he established an art institute in Lufeng District. In 1958 he joined the art editorial board of the Lufeng Publishing House; he joined the Lufeng District Cultural Institute in 1960 and in 1964, he became a designer with the Lufeng District No. 2 Light Industrial Art Woodcarving Factory. He returned to the Lufeng District Cultural Institute in 1978.

Li specializes in Chinese painting and religious painting.