As for his painting style, fellow artist Liu K'ang-tseng has described it this way: "It belongs to the strong and forceful, grand and vigorous type, because the artists he most admires are Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Rodin, Van Gogh, Shih T'ao, and Pa Ta.
其中，尤以軍閥孫傳芳，反對最烈，而此時，年輕氣盛的劉海粟仍是據理力爭，不肯妥協，希望求得學術的尊嚴與藝術的真理，逼得孫傳芳密令緝拿，並將關閉學校為手段後，海粟先生才心不甘、情不願地覆電：「海粟仰體我聯帥苦心，已遵將人體寫生課程取消，以杜悠悠之口。」