1905年12月23日出生在北京一个满族家庭，先后就读于北京第四民族小学、北京师范女子分校、男女同校的北京师范学校国文系。1915年毕业于北京师范学校女生分校，考入北京师范大学国文系，1931年以优异成绩毕业。她也成为二十世纪早期中国为数不多的最早接受高等教育的女性之一。1931年至1937年在济南和青岛任高中语文教师，1938年返回北平，在北京师范大学附属女中任教。1943年流亡重庆，在北碚国立编译馆社会通俗读物担任编审。抗战胜利后在北碚女子师范学院师范部任教，在乡村建设学院任副教授。1950年初返回北京，1958年起一直担任画院画师，为一级美术师。1931年和作家老舍结婚，有三女一儿。
胡絜青，曾受著名画家汪采白、杨仲子、孙诵昭影响，后从师齐白石，深得教诲并受器重。1931年与舒舍予（老舍）结婚，随老舍去各地， 在大小师范院校教授文学课。1949年解放后专业从事绘画。画风得白石老人真传，师法自然，刻意求新，曾向于非闇等老画家求教，花卉、翎毛、草虫等写意于工笔时得佳作。逐渐形成个人风格，尤擅长画松、菊、梅。历届全国画展、书展均有作品展出，并多次获奖。

1930年初春，还在北京师范学校就读的胡絜青来到西城烟筒胡同白涤洲先生家中。当时，胡絜青与几位女同学成立了一个文学团体，取名为“真社”，听说老舍从英国回国，住在白先生家，她们推举胡絜青为代表，想请老舍来学校座谈文学。胡絜青与老舍结识后，两人通过频繁的书信交谈，情投意合。他们都是满族人，有爱好文学的共同志趣和相同的生活习惯。两人于1931年4月定婚，7月29日在北京结婚。婚后跟随老舍来到济南、青岛，在一所中学教书。抗战爆发后，胡絜青带着孩子回到北平照顾老舍的母亲。北平沦陷后，她又带着三个孩子逃出北平到重庆北碚与老舍团聚。1949年新中国成立后，自幼喜爱绘画的胡絜青在已近五旬之时决定学习绘画。胡絜青在绘画道路上共有两位老师，一位是极具写意功底的齐白石先生，一位则是以工笔见长的于非闇先生。胡絜青集合二位大师的真传，加之自己的悟性，使其作品气韵深厚，深受好评。经过年复一年的努力，胡絜青成为了中国画坛上一位杰出的女画家。在胡絜青绘画的题材中，“菊花”是她开创并独领风骚的一个领域，其创作的“百菊图”是其在绘画艺术上的重要成就。她还较早地把苹果、鸭梨、谷物等国画没有表现的事物引入到国画的绘画题材中，拓展了国画的表现领域，赋予了作品浓厚的生活气息和时代特点。这成为她对国画艺术的一个独特贡献。1957年与陈半丁、于非闇、孙诵昭举办作品联展。1980年在香港举办个人画展，並有《絜青画册初集》问世。从胡絜青留下的一幅幅绘画作品中，我们能够欣赏到她精湛的绘画技巧，解读到她丰富的内心世界，感受到她对生活、对大自然、对人世间一切美好事物的深深眷恋。
其书法作品和散文亦有情趣。散文《老赶不上趟》曾获北京市散文一等奖，《老舍和朋友们》与舒乙共获首届杜康散文优秀奖和第三届（十月）文学奖。

我是学文学的，前半生教书。可是，从小就喜欢画画，练字，四十岁起才开始拜师习画，可谓半路出家。
但我是幸运的，我的写意老师是齐白石，我的工笔老师是于非闇，都是当代大师。我从他们那里不光是学到了技法，还学到了当艺术家的道德规范，可谓机遇难得。
我有一个好家庭，丈夫一辈子从事写作，虽然他自己的作画水平不及一个幼儿园的孩子，却偏偏天生地有一双鉴赏家的眼力，评论起来头头是道，加上为人热情，喜好交结画家，家中常常画家如云，墙上好画常换，满壁生辉；我们有一个小院子，种花养草是我们的共同爱好，极盛时栽培的独朵菊花多达百盆，秋天经常举办家庭花展。我陶醉在百花丛中，它们都是我的天然好老师；而家庭艺术沙龙式的漫谈常常使我处在创作的激情之中，可谓环境助我。
我爱观摩各派古画，我爱旅行，我爱写生，我爱走到哪儿写生到哪儿，我並不认为这样做有什么值得特别夸耀的地方，不，这是我生活的一部分，我由传统中走来，想在生活中找到新东西。想用新的方法去表现，去画，去画我自己的东西，我老老实实地画，我老老实实地写，我老老实实地作人。
我今年八十有七，不知不觉留下了几百张画，几百张字，像我的脚印，证明我没有白白地来到了人世。
我选出了几十幅画，印在这里，远远看去，的确象一串稀稀疏疏，歪歪扭扭的脚印，祗是为了多添一个实证：有人跋涉过，攀登过，寻求过，全是为了把美奉献给人间。

Born in Beijing in December 23, 1905 a Manchu Family, graduated from primary school, Beijing fourth national Beijing Normal University, women's coeducational Chinese Department of Beijing normal school. 1915 graduated from Beijing normal school girls school, was admitted to the Beijing Normal University Chinese department in 1931, graduated with honors. She also became one of the few early Chinese women to receive higher education in the early twentieth Century. From 1931 to 1937, high school Chinese teachers in Ji'nan and Qingdao, in 1938 to return to Peking, taught at the Beijing Normal University affiliated school. 1943 in Beibei in exile in Chongqing, refereed the National Institute for compilation of popular books. After the victory of the Anti Japanese War, she was taught at the Beibei women's normal college and served as associate professor in the school of rural construction. At the beginning of 1950 to return to Beijing, since 1958 has served as a painting artist, an artist. 1931 and the writer Lao She married, there are three women a son.
Hu Xieqing was the famous painter Wang Caibai, Yang Zhongzi, Sun Songzhao, from Qi Baishi, won the teachings and valued. In 1931 with Shu Sheyu (Lao She) married, with Lao She went to all over, in the size of Teachers College Teaching literature. 1949 after liberation specializing in painting. The old man style Bai Shi true nature, deliberately innovation, told in the dark old painter for flowers, feathers, insects etc. when in the meticulous freehand works. Gradually formed personal style, especially good at painting pine, chrysanthemum, plum. At the National Book Fair Exhibition, all works, and has won numerous awards.

In the early spring of 1930, Beijing normal school Hu Xieqing came to West alley chimney in the Bai Dizhou house. At that time, Hu Xieqing and several female students set up a literary group, named "real community", Lao she heard from Britain in return, Mr. White, they elected Hu Xieqing as the representative, please come to school to Lao She literary forum. Hu Xieqing and Lao she met, two people through frequent letters to fall in love. They are the Manchu people, have common interests in literature and the same habits. In April 1931 two people engaged, married in July 29th in Beijing. After marriage to Lao She came to Ji'nan, Qingdao, in a middle school teaching. After the outbreak of the war, Hu Xieqing returned to Beijing to take care of his mother with a child. Beijing after the fall, she took three children from Peiping to Chongqing Beibei and reunion of Lao she. The establishment of the new China after 1949, favorite painting Hu Xieqing decided to study painting in nearly five years of time. Hu Xieqing has a total of two teachers in the painting on the road, is a very enjoyable experience of Mr. Qi Baishi, who is known for meticulous in the dark mr.. Hu Xieqing set two masters of the city, together with his own understanding, so that it works artistically deep, well received. After a hard year after year, Hu Xieqing became an outstanding female artist painting China. In Hu Xieqing's painting theme, "Chrysanthemum" is she created and a leader, the creation of the "100 chrysanthemum map" is the important achievement in the art of painting. She had earlier put apple, pear, grain and other traditional Chinese painting did not show things into painting paintings, expand the traditional Chinese painting performance areas, give it a deep breath of life and the characteristics of the times. This has become her unique contribution to Chinese painting art. In 1957, with Chen Banding in the dark, Sun Songzhao held the exhibition. 1980 solo exhibition in Hongkong, and the "green book" was set at the beginning of Xie. From the Hu Xieqing left a picture in the painting works, we can enjoy her superb painting skills, reading to her rich inner world, feel her life, deeply love the nature of the world all the good things.
His calligraphy and prose are also interesting. Prose "old catch up" has won the first prize in Beijing prose, "Lao She and friends" and Shu B won the first Kang prose excellent award and the third (October) literature award.

I study literature, the first half of teaching. However, since the childhood love painting, calligraphy, forty year old began to study painting, is a.
But I was lucky, my freehand teacher is Qi Baishi, my meticulous teacher is in the dark, are contemporary masters. I learned from them not only techniques, but also learned when the artist's ethics, can be described as a rare opportunity.
I have a good family life, her husband engaged in writing his own painting, although less than the level of a child in the kindergarten, but naturally have a pair of connoisseur's eyesight, comments and passionate closely reasoned and well argued that, with the home often like painters, artists such as clouds, wall paintings often change, full the wall Shenghui; we have a small courtyard garden is our common hobby, only at the height of his chrysanthemum cultivation up to 100 basin, autumn often held family flower show. I revel in the flowers, they are my good teacher and natural; family art salon style talk often makes me in the creation fervor, the environment is to help me.
I love to watch all the paintings, I love to travel, I love life, I love to go where the sketch where, I don't think this is what particular boast place, no, this is a part of my life, I came from the traditional, want to find new things in life. Want to use the new method to performance, to draw, to draw my own things, I honestly, I honestly write, I honestly do.
I have eighty this year, leaving hundreds of paintings unconsciously, hundreds of words, like my footprints, that I did not come to the world in vain.
I have dozens of pictures, in here, far from looking like a bunch of really sparse, crooked footprints, just to add a positive: some people traveled, climbed, sought, all for the United States dedicated to the world.