Students had to practice croquis every day. They either made rapid sketches of each other or went outdoors to capture small scenes. For sketching, they started by copying busts before moving on to living models.

Ke's studio was located on the outskirts of the city, and there were many seniors in the nearby villages who often acted as models. Color became Ke's least favorite subject, despite being the thing she had cherished most before.

In the early period, the students painted every still object that could be found at hand, including apples, pears, various types of jars, wine bottles, shoes, spoons and bowls.

Busts, apples and pears are the objects that appear most in the exam, so in order to get good results, the students have to render the same object over and over again, focusing on the "high point areas" such as the structure of the face and the folds of the clothes.

"No matter how much I loved painting, I still felt exhausted after painting something I didn't like for a long time," Ke said.

She enjoyed painting landscapes and particularly employed the color styles of Vincent Van Gogh. In the studio, though, the students only attempted styles the examiners might like.

"The art schools' exams are very formulaic. They don't care whether you work in a post-impressionist or neoclassicist style. I just couldn't develop an interest in painting still life at all," she said.