Elementary students discover the beauty of endangered birds
2023-02-20 20:02:10
By Chen Zai, Yichang International Communication Studio
On February 17, Wang Dongyun rapped on the front door of Gezhouba Experimental Primary School with a big book of hand-drawn illustrations under his arm. The book, “Illustration of 100 Endangered Yangtze River Bird Species”, is his own work.
The young artist completed his book of intuitive, accurate, and meticulous illustrations in the first semester of his post-graduate study. It includes paintings of, among many others, the Chinese merganser, the black stork, and the red-bellied pheasant.
His work immediately garnered attention. Wang won first prize in the Milan Design Week China Design Exhibition, and was featured on CCTV News. The university opened an exhibition hall exclusively for the illustrations and launched an exhibition called "Bird Protection in the Yangtze River Basin".
Sharing his illustrations with the youngsters at Gezhouba Experimental Primary School allowed Wang to teach them about endangered birds and about how birds contribute to nature. The young graduate is an advocate for ecological protection.
Wang said that the most difficult part of the creative process was mastering the morphological characteristics of birds. Getting to know different types of birds was both a challenge and an adventure for him. Whenever he had free time, he would go to the fields to sketch birds preying, flying and perching, and then return to campus to polish the sketch into an accurate and thorough work by reading books, watching videos, and consulting bird experts.
On February 17, Wang Dongyun rapped on the front door of Gezhouba Experimental Primary School with a big book of hand-drawn illustrations under his arm. The book, “Illustration of 100 Endangered Yangtze River Bird Species”, is his own work.
Wang Dongyun talks to students at Gezhouba Experimental Primary School.
Twenty-three year-old Wang has had a special feeling for birds since he was a child.
"I grew up in the countryside in the middle of beautiful mountains and rivers. Every morning when I woke up, I could hear birdsong. It was a sound that purified your ears each day." Wang said. He associates birds with childhood joys and the beauty of nature.
When he enrolled at the College of Performing and Fine Arts of Three Gorges University, Wang's favorite course was bird-and-flower painting. Initially, he mainly painted sparrows and magpies, which are frequently depicted in traditional Chinese bird-and-flower paintings. In his senior year, guided by his tutor He Guangqing, he decided to have a crack at painting all the rare birds in the Yangtze River Basin.
When he enrolled at the College of Performing and Fine Arts of Three Gorges University, Wang's favorite course was bird-and-flower painting. Initially, he mainly painted sparrows and magpies, which are frequently depicted in traditional Chinese bird-and-flower paintings. In his senior year, guided by his tutor He Guangqing, he decided to have a crack at painting all the rare birds in the Yangtze River Basin.
Wang (right) and his tutor He Guangqing
The young artist completed his book of intuitive, accurate, and meticulous illustrations in the first semester of his post-graduate study. It includes paintings of, among many others, the Chinese merganser, the black stork, and the red-bellied pheasant.
His work immediately garnered attention. Wang won first prize in the Milan Design Week China Design Exhibition, and was featured on CCTV News. The university opened an exhibition hall exclusively for the illustrations and launched an exhibition called "Bird Protection in the Yangtze River Basin".
Sharing his illustrations with the youngsters at Gezhouba Experimental Primary School allowed Wang to teach them about endangered birds and about how birds contribute to nature. The young graduate is an advocate for ecological protection.
Wang said that the most difficult part of the creative process was mastering the morphological characteristics of birds. Getting to know different types of birds was both a challenge and an adventure for him. Whenever he had free time, he would go to the fields to sketch birds preying, flying and perching, and then return to campus to polish the sketch into an accurate and thorough work by reading books, watching videos, and consulting bird experts.
Now that he has completed the series of illustrations, Wang has begun thinking about his next subjects – fish in the Yangtze River.
Wang enjoys showing his work to elementary school students. He says that children should learn from an early age to protect endangered animals and about the importance of rare birds to the ecosystem, so that they can become environmental protection advocates when they grow up.
