Wang Shenglie (1923-2003), also known under the name Luozi (橐子), was from Shenyang, Liaoning Province. He went to Japan to study from 1941 to 1944. After his return to China in 1945, he joined the Northeast Youth League, where he served as section chief and head of its Propaganda Department. In 1946, he met Xu Beihong, whose ambition and mission to improve Chinese painting and revitalize Chinese culture had a profound impact on him. In 1947, he served as the acting director of the Art Department of Liaoning Provincial Shenyang Normal College. In 1948, he served as director of the art group of the Normal Department of Northeast Administration College. In June 1949, he transferred to the Fine Arts Department of the Northeast Lu Xun Institute of Literature and Art.

In 1957, when he was only 34 years old, he created the famous painting "Eight Girls Throwing into the River" (八女投江), which has been praised for more than half a century. One version of painting has been collected by the China Military Museum; a larger version, especially created, has been exhibited in the "September 18th" History Museum in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, which opened in 1999.

Wang established the Guandong School of Painting (关东画派) in 1961. It was made up of a group of painters from the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts who mainly painted figures, with distinctive themes and strong colors. They paid attention to life, society, and history, and adhered to realistic artistic creation techniques.