Spring and Winter in the Blue Tray belongs to Zhang Xiaoli's box series, a creative endeavor initiated in 2015. The work extends the artist's contemporary reinterpretation of literati landscapes. The meticulous strokes of Gongbi painting skillfully dillineate the landscape, yet upon closer inspection, a transformative twist unfolds — the painting morphs into a Lego structure, a commentary on consumerism. For Zhang, the essence of landscape paintings has ventured far from the traditional veneration of nature. Nature becomes elusive, akin to the painting's imagery of a reflection in water, with only a small island revealing its tip above the surface. Her portrayal of the landscape departs from the literati's pursuit of the natural beauty, evolving into a profound introspection. In a meditative communion with the world, she contemplates the landscape's imagery in her mind and guides her hands, wielding brushes to articulate it. Building upon the present visual experience, she reconstructs the interplay between humanity and landscape, crafting a self-consistent environment that resonates in the present tense.