Zhang Chongren

Zhang Chongren or Chang Ch'ung-jen (张充仁, 1907 - 1998), was a Chinese artist and sculptor best remembered in Europe as the friend of Hergé, the Belgian comics writer and artist. The two met when Zhang was an art student in Brussels. Zhang Chongren in the 1930s; courtesy http://www. ... Zhang Chongren in the 1930s; courtesy http://www. ... 1907 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... World map showing location of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... An interpersonal relationship is some relationship or connection between two people. ... Georges Remi Hergé Georges Remi (May 23, 1907 - March 3, 1983), better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. ... Comics (sometimes spelled comix) are combinations of words and images into a medium for telling stories. ... The term writer can apply to anyone who creates a written work, but the word more usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, or those who have written in many different forms. ... Artist is a subjective term which describes a person creative in, innovative in, or adept at, their endeavors. ... Resources ArtLex. ... Students attending a lecture at the Helsinki University of Technology Etymologically derived through Middle English from the Latin second-type conjugation verb stÅ­dÄ“rÄ•, which means to direct ones zeal at; hence a student is one who directs zeal at a subject. ... Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels (Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the headquarters of the European Union, as two of its four main institutions have their headquarters in the...

Early life

Zhang was born the son of a gardener in 1907 in Xujiahui, then a suburb of Shanghai, China. The young Zhang lost both his parents at an early age and grew up in an orphanage. At the age of seven, he entered the Tushanwan Art School, a French religious establishment, where he learnt French, drawing and was systematically indoctrinated into Western art. After finishing schooling in 1928, Zhang worked in design for the film industry and a local newspaper. In 1931, he left China for the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Belgium. A gardener is any person involved in the growing and maintenance of plants, notably in a garden. ... Xujiahui (徐家汇) is an area in the Xuhui District of Shanghai, China. ... Shanghai (Chinese: 上海; pinyin: ; Shanghainese IPA: ), situated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta, is Chinas largest city. ... An orphanage is an institution dedicated to caring for orphans (children without living parents). ... 1928 was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... The Académie des beaux-arts (Academy of Fine Arts) is a French learned society. ... Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels (Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the headquarters of the European Union, as two of its four main institutions have their headquarters in the...

Influence on Hergé

Hergé's early Tintin albums were highly dependant on stereotypes for 'comedic' effect. Russians (Bolshewiks) and Americans were portrayed as evil, black Africans as lazy and dumb. Tintin and Snowy (Tintin et Milou) are world travellers and inseparable friends in The Adventures of Tintin. ... Bolshevik Party Meeting. ... Evil is a term describing that which is regarded as morally bad, intrinsically corrupt, wantonly destructive, inhumane, or wicked. ... Black is a color with several subtle differences in meaning. ... Africa is the worlds second-largest continent and second most populous. ... Laziness is the lack of desire to act or to work, to stretch ones forces; tendency to rest, to do nothing. ...

At the close of the newspaper run of Cigars of the Pharaoh, Hergé had mentioned that Tintin's next adventure (The Blue Lotus) would bring him to China. Father Gosset, the chaplain to the Chinese students at the University of Leuven, wrote to Hergé urging him to be sensitive about what he wrote about China. Hergé agreed, and in the spring of 1934 Gosset introduced him to Zhang Chongren. The two young artists quickly became close friends, and Zhang introduced Hergé to Chinese history, culture, and the techniques of Chinese art. As a result of this experience, Hergé would strive in The Blue Lotus, and in subsequent Tintin adventures, to be meticulously accurate in depicting the places which Tintin visited. Cigars of the Pharaoh (originally Les Cigares du Pharaon) is a one of a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. ... The Blue Lotus (originally Le Lotus Bleu), first published in 1936, is one of a series of classic comic-strip albums written and illustrated by Hergé featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. ... The Catholic University of Leuven, founded in 1425, is now the names of two Belgian universities, after the original university split in 1968: the Dutch-speaking Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, and the French-speaking Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium This is a disambiguation page — a navigational... 1934 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 13th-century BC spouted ritual wine vessel (Guang). ...

As a token of appreciation, he added character "Chong-chen Chang" (Tchang in original French-language version) to The Blue Lotus, a young Chinese boy who meets and befriends Tintin. Hergé mocks his own naïveté deep inside the album, when he tries to let Tintin explain to the fictional Chang that Zhang's fear for the 'white devils' is based on prejudice. He then recites a few Western stereotypes of the Chinese. This Chang will later return in Tintin in Tibet. The Adventures of Tintin has several minor characters: General Alcazar General of the army of San Theodoros, Alcazar switches with comedic frequency between being president of the country and leading a rebellion to battle the government led by his arch-rival General Tapioca. ... Tintin in Tibet (originally Tintin au Tibet) is one of a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin as the hero. ...

As another result of his friendship with Zhang, Hergé became increasingly aware of the problems of colonialism, in particular the Empire of Japan's advances into China. The Blue Lotus carries a bold anti-imperialist message, contrary to the prevailing view in the West, which was sympathetic to Japan and the colonial enterprise. As a result, it drew sharp criticism from various parties, including a protest by Japanese diplomats to the Belgian Foreign Ministry. World map of colonialism circa 1945. ... The Empire of Japan (大日本帝国; Dai-Nippon/-Nihon Teikoku) commonly refers to Japan from the Meiji Restoration until the end of World War II. Politically, it covers the period from the enforced establishment of prefectures in place of feudal domains (廃藩置県; Hai-han Chi-ken) in July 14, 1871, through the expansion... Anti-imperialism is a current within the political left advocating the collapse of imperialism. ...

Return to China

At the end of his studies in Brussels in 1935, Zhang made a tour of France, Britain, the Netherlands, Nazi Germany, Austria and Italy before returning home to China. Upon his arrival back in Shanghai in 1936, Zhang held a number of shows exhibiting his drawings and sculptures. He also established the Chongren Studio to further his art and to teach. 1935 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Hergé lost contact with him during the invasion of China by Japan (which is usually regarded as the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War) and the subsequent civil war. More than four decades would pass before the two friends would meet again. In a remarkable instance of life mirroring art, Hergé managed to resume contact with his old friend Zhang Chongren, years after Tintin rescued the fictional Chang in the closing pages of Tintin in Tibet. Zhang had been reduced to a street sweeper by the Cultural Revolution, before becoming the head of the Fine Arts Academy in Shanghai during the 1970s. The Second Sino-Japanese War was a major invasion of eastern China by Japan preceding and during World War II. It ended with the surrender of Japan in 1945. ... The Chinese Civil War was a conflict in China between the Kuomintang (The Nationalist Party; The Nationalists; KMT) and the Communist Party of China (CPC). ... A street sweeping machine in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. A Street sweeper is a person or machine that cleans streets, usually in an urban area. ... A poster during the Cultural Revolution The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (Simplified Chinese: 无产阶级文化大革命; Traditional Chinese: 無產階級文化大革命; pinyin: ; literally Proletarian Cultural Great Revolution; often abbreviated to 文化大革命 wén huà dà gé mìng, literally Great Cultural Revolution, or simply 文革 wén gé, literally Cultural Revolution) in the Peoples Republic of China... Alternate meanings: See Shanghai (disambiguation) Shanghai (Chinese: 上海; pinyin: shàng hǎi; Shanghainese IPA: /zɑ̃ hɛ/) is Chinas largest city and is situated on the banks of the Chang Jiang delta. ... This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1970s. ...

After the economic liberialisation of China from 1979, Zhang received widespread acknowledgment in the Chinese art community. A collection of his oil paintings and sculptures were published and in his later years, Zhang worked as an editor and translator of several books on art. Among the portraits he has painted are those of Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping and French President François Mitterrand. This page refers to the year 1979. ... Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping   listen? (Simplified Chinese: 邓小平; Traditional Chinese: 鄧小平; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Teng Hsiao-ping; pronounced Dung Shyao-ping; August 22, 1904—February 19, 1997) was a revolutionary elder in the Communist Party of China (CPC) who served as the de facto ruler of the Peoples Republic of... François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (October 26, 1916 – January 8, 1996;   pronunciation?) was a French politician and President of France from May 1981, re-elected in 1988, until 1995. ...

Zhang returned to Europe for a reunion with Hergé in 1981 upon invitation of the French government. In 1985 he received French citizenship and settled in Paris to teach, where he died in 1998. Shortly after his death, a memorial museum dedicated to him was established in Shanghai. A number of his paintings and sculptures are held in the China Museum of Fine Art in Beijing and the China Museum of Revolutionary Warfare. 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Beijing   listen? (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking) is the capital city of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ...