1940年11月生于上海，浙江绍兴人。1956年赴西安学习工作。历任中国美术家协会湖北分会专业画家，西安画院、深圳画院一级美术师。60年代始先后师从何海霞、石鲁、致力于现代水墨人物画的研习与创作。80年代初形成其浑厚豪放、不拘形似的泼墨人物画风格，产生广泛影响，促进了画坛泼墨大写意人物流派的兴起。1985年起，进一步对传统笔墨的形式大胆变革，其《贵州系列》、《灯系列》等一批泼朋、粉墨作品极具强烈的生命意识和表现性质，在中国画向现代转换过程中，在不毛栾传统斤墨趣味的基础上，锐意探索水墨画表现的可能性，从而成为新的水墨语言的代表人物，具有承前启后的意义。现为中国美术家协会会员、深圳市政协委。

有《李世南画集》、《李世南画选》、《李世南速写艺术集》等。作品曾入选长六、七届全国美展及“美术批评家’93年度提名展“等国内外重要展览。五种个人画集在国内外出版。对其生平、创作、技法的研究专集有《李世南的水墨世界》。传略收入《中国美术家大辞典》、《中国当代国画辞典》、《中国大陆中青代美术家百人传》、《世界华人艺术家大典》等。

November 1940 born in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Shaoxing. 1956 to study in Xi'an. He China Artists Association Hubei branch of a professional painter of Xi'an painting academy, first class artist of Shenzhen painting academy. The beginning of 60s has studied study and creation of He Haixia, Shi Lu, committed to the modern ink painting. At the beginning of 80s, the formation of a vigorous bold or freehand style, has wide influence, promote the rise of freehand figure painting ink genre. In 1985, further to the traditional pen and ink in the form of bold change, the "Guizhou series", "light" series and a number of friends, with very strong makeup work life consciousness and the nature, to the modern transformation process in Chinese painting, without hair on the taste of Jin Luan traditional ink, to explore the possibility of ink paintings, which become the representative of the new language, played an important role. Member of Chinese Artists Association, Shenzhen Municipal Committee of cppcc.
A "Li Shinan album", "Li Shinan", "Li Shinan paintings sketch art collection" etc.. Work has been selected for the six or seven national art exhibition and long "art critics' 93 annual awards" and other important domestic and international exhibition. Five personal collections published at home and abroad. Study on the album of his life, creation, techniques have "Li Shinan ink world". Biography "China artists dictionary" income, "contemporary Chinese Dictionary", "China Chinese, the younger generation of artists", "100 world Chinese Artist Award" etc..