Bai Li

Often remembered in the West as Li Bai or Li Po, he lived during the Tang dynasty and became one of the most celebrated poets in Chinese history. Traditional accounts place his life between 701 and 762, and his poetry helped shape the image of the wandering, free-spirited poet for generations to come.

His poems are famous for their clarity, imagination, and emotional ease. He wrote about moonlight, mountains, parting from friends, court life, and the pleasures and sadness of travel, often in language that feels immediate even now. Alongside Du Fu, he is usually seen as one of the great towering figures of classical Chinese poetry.

Stories about him have grown almost as famous as the poems themselves, blending history and legend. What remains certain is the power of the work: lyrical, memorable, and full of motion, wonder, and feeling.