Fighting the virus with art

Some people in China are creating art to encourage others in the fight against the coronavirus.

Mao Kexin, 20, studied at the School of Animation and Digital Arts, Communication University of China, in Beijing. She recently joined a campaign calling for positive spirit. She has made comic strips.

Mao returned to her home in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, in mid-January. Her family has practically barricaded themselves at home after a lockdown of the city days later to contain the further spread of the virus.

"I have spent days at home without stepping out," Mao says, adding that her frustration of being cooped up was worsened by the "negative feelings" among her friends on social media such as Sina Weibo and WeChat.

She armed herself with the necessary protection gear and took a tour around a forest park near the Huazhong University of Science and Technology. "It was a sunny day, and there were people taking a walk on the street, although not many," she says. "Everything was quiet and seemed in order, not the gloomy picture painted by some posts online."

After a quick tour around the park, Mao recounted her experience in her comics. "I just wanted to present what I saw and help to clarify some of the misinformation."

Mao has been reading comics since middle school.

"At first I was drawn to comics since it was more vivid and easier to read than books, but then I found myself positively influenced by them," Mao says, adding that such manga work as Naruto has inspired her to work harder and rise above all challenges, including working her way to her dream college.

"I often read a comic piece several times and get a different inspiration each time."

Mao sent her piece to the Beijing campaign in early February. The campaign is an effort of the Beijing Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau and the Beijing Animation and Game Industry Alliance, among others.

"I want my works to tell people that life still goes on and things are not that bad," she says.

The campaign has received more than 1,000 pieces of artworks, including from Fujian, Guangdong and Gansu provinces.

"We've received very active public response," says Liu Chungang, a representative of the organizing alliance.

Most works express gratitude toward those on the front line of the fight against the virus, Liu adds.

To date, more than 230 pieces of comics have been published in major media platforms, including People's Daily and Sina. Paper-cutting, Chinese ink painting and oil painting elements have been applied to the cartoons, caricatures and comics.

"The idea is to help boost social stability and get the right ideas across to the public," Liu says.

A total of 100 works will be selected to display at a comic and animation festival later this year.

Xu Pengfei, renowned painter and a member of the Chinese Artists Association, has also made many comics for the campaign. "I consider comic works newsworthy, ideological, humorous and artful. They have to be a product of one's own mind."

Xu, who is in his 70s, has lent satire and humor to his work and hammered home the importance of doing the right thing at the moment. In one of his works, a bat is missing from a painting and ends up on a plate.

"I wanted to remind people the animal was an auspicious symbol in the past, not poisonous," Xu says. "It might trigger public thinking and interest, and lead to deeper education."

Xu has kept an eye on the news since the coronavirus outbreak and expressed his opinion through art.

"I have the confidence that the epidemic will end soon, because our country has experience in handling epidemic (SARS)," he says.