Zhu Shijie was born in Guangzhou and learned traditional Chinese, flower and bird, and landscape paintings from Yan Chunsheng and Fan Shaoyun in 1912. In 1918, he decided to try oil painting. In 1922, along with two other artists Yan Wenliang and Hu Cuizhong, He established the Suzhou Academy of Fine Arts. In 1985, he was invited to exhibit all of his major works from his lifetime in Beijing. 9 works including "Jing Gangshan Mountain" and "Small Wharf at Dongting Lake" have been collected by the National Art Museum of China in Beijing. Jiangsu Fine Arts Museum also collected his work "Casting Net". He used to teach in Eastern China College of Art, the former Nanjing Academy of Fine Arts.