Strength in silence

Before learning to paint in primary school, Li always felt lonely in a silent world. She knew she was different from her peers because she could not hear. But a painting class opened for her a door to creativity and a way of expression.

"Everyone has his or her own imaginative world. In this world, I can use my painting brush to convey what I think and want to express," Li says.

To pursue her passion in art, Li went to study advertising design at Changsha Vocational and Technical School. It was in class where she met her future husband.

"I still remember my first mural, which was to help a kindergarten to design and paint its wall," Li says. The project made her realize how happy she was immersing herself into painting.

Graduating from college in 2005, Li got a job as a typist at a public institute in Zhuzhou, Hunan.

It was a decent job in the eyes of her father, but Li was not happy because she could not communicate with other colleagues and the lonely feeling from childhood came back.

In nearly 10 years as a typist, Li seldom picked up her brushes and her husband knew she was not happy.

In March 2016, under her husband's suggestion, Li quit the job, although the move was strongly opposed by her father, and joined Hu's company to be a wall painter.

"I understand my father, who always worries that I will live an unstable life," Li says, adding that wall painting is a demanding job because it requires people to work outdoors, whether in extremely cold or hot weather.

As all the people are hearing-impaired, communication with clients is the most common challenge that the team faces.

"We communicate through typed words, which is slow and has caused us to lose some clients," Li says. Besides communication, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has also led to uncertainty with some projects.

Apart from that, Li is confident about the team's painting and design skills.

The company's 3D wall-painting artwork won first prize at a Hunan provincial competition for young entrepreneurs in 2016.