Liu, who now lives and teaches in Hong Kong, was born in Shangtung province in 1932. At the age of 20 he entered the art department of the National Taiwan Normal University, where he was strongly influenced by the works of Cezanne and Van Gogh. He was especially interested in their use of color and tonal changes.
劉國松是山東益都人，生於民國廿一年，十四歲開始學國畫，廿歲進入師大藝術系，首度接觸西畫，被塞尚和梵谷所吸引，對於西畫豐富的顏色和層次的變化非常好奇。