NE China senior citizen gains fame because of his comics
2015-07-21
A retired worker in the city of Changchun, Jilin province, has gained a bit of popularity these days, on WeChat, a Chinese mobile text and voice messaging communication service developed by Tencent, thanks to his cartoon panels, according to a local newspaper report, on July 18.
Wang Xianglin, 76 years old, worked for years at the Municipal Gymnasium, and then, after he retired turned to drawing comics as a way of recalling his past and reflecting on reality, he explains, and used a panel of four cartoons per page to tell the story in an organized way.
When asked about his sources, Wang holds up a panel titled Four Colleagues in the Municipal Gymnasium, and replies, "Most of the stories come from real life. For example, this one, which describes my colleagues in my work days," then adds, "Maybe that's why people love my comics."
Others of Wang's comics, such as Disappearing Handcrafts and Craftsmen, reflect his thoughts on things happening over time.
Wang points out that he's not a professional artist, although he did dream of making drawing his major but couldn't get into his dream academy, but he does have a certain flair for comics and simply loves drawing.
So, he kept on drawing as a hobby and now that he's retired. "These comics form my life," he said.