The Versatile Master Artist

Early March in Myanmar is not the traditional Southeast Asian rainy season.

However, the rain in Yangon is like the tears of a sentimental woman, always arriving unexpectedly.

In the rainy Fitz campus, the European-style auditorium building made of black bricks and flashing white lights through the windows resemble a black-and-white old film, flowing with the unique texture of early 20th-century old-time film.

The sound of a melodious symphony comes from the grand hall.

A YouTube video is playing to its end on the 350-inch large laser projector in the center of the auditorium.

On the screen,

the blond young man Jerry, who plays the protagonist of the microfilm, is silently crying while holding an elderly Doberman from the stray animal rescue center, which is about to be euthanized.

The image displays the English slogan in cursive, ”To love animals is to love ourselves,” as the promotional phrase of the microfilm.

”Teachers and students, the microfilm just shown was starring Jerry Lorenz from the 13th grade, titled ’Lost Love’.”

The female host passionately addressed the full house of students.

”At the Yangon International Student Film Festival, which ended this Wednesday, this microfilm was awarded the ’Excellent Compassion Award’ and was specially reported by the Yangon Economic Weekly, let us give applause to the outstanding student.”

Mona, who hosts the commendation ceremony, put down the cue card in her hand and smiled gently as she clapped.

With the president of the girls’ student council leading,

the students at Fitz started applauding thunderously, engaged in lively discussion.

”Boss, you’re amazing!” Jerry’s teammates cheered vigorously, clapping loudly.

”So compassionate. I’m about to cry, the dog is so pitiful.”

A sentimental girl, seeing the scene on the screen where the Doberman was placed into a pet nitrogen chamber, vigorously wiped her tears.

This nitrogen chamber is designed for euthanizing elderly pets,

with increasing nitrogen levels inside the chamber, allowing the dogs to fall into a coma without any pain. It has a market price of up to 2500 US Dollars on Amazon and was charitably sponsored by Jerry’s father’s company.

”This was truly a great exposure, Jerry seems to have the aura of a Hollywood star. He wears perfume to school every day, unlike our local boys who lack such cultivated habits and aren’t gentlemanly at all.” Jerry’s little fans focused more on the handsome blond guy.

”Hmph, I don’t think the microfilm was all that good.”

Some people secretly expressed resentment towards the school’s fuss: ”Hasn’t our school film club been making a bunch of microfilms all year long, just screening them casually during school celebrations or club days, never holding a special commendation ceremony?”

”Idiot, the point isn’t about the microfilm, it’s about compassion—do you understand compassion?”

Immediately, a classmate refuted: ”Has our school’s film club ever won a prize at an international student film festival? Ever had journalists write special reports? This can be included in the school’s next year’s admission brochure, if you can achieve that, the school would also hold a special commendation ceremony for you.”

Currently, it’s the Fitz International School campus commendation ceremony.

The charity compassion microfilm created by 13th grader Jerry Lorenz was unexpectedly successful.

Not only did it win an award at Yangon’s Student Film Festival, but there were also journalist special reports titled ’Facing Death—The Final Journey of Companion Animals,’ covering Jerry’s pet euthanasia compassion project.

Even though it’s only a small hundred-word piece on the seventh page of the newspaper.

The Yangon Economic Weekly is a serious mainstream media under the city government, not some gossip tabloid or a worthless self-media.

This is significant for a private aristocratic school like Fitz.

The school board specially decided to hold a themed commendation ceremony this afternoon, and even the European headquarters of Fitz International Education Group sent congratulatory emails.

In these chaotic public occasions,

Gu Weijing routinely sat in a corner of the senior class section.

Compared to the microfilm, his thoughts remain mostly on yesterday’s copying practice.

The webpage on his iPad is the homepage of the exhibition ’The Shape of Power: Lang Shining’s New Style Painting Exhibition’ produced by the Dongxia Taipei Palace Museum in 17, which he occasionally magnifies to appreciate some of the pieces.

Lang Shining’s painting techniques are roughly divided into two categories.

Generally still using Chinese painting brush techniques as the framework, and Western color application in the ’Western-style Heavy Color’ technique creation.

This type of work mainly features flowers, birds, plants, and landscapes, and learning the painting technique is relatively simple.

With some comprehension, one can master seventy to eighty percent.

On this basis, accurate sketching line modeling and exquisite focal perspective ratios are added, which can still completely retain Eastern charm, cleverly integrating the essence of Chinese painting, oil painting, and sketching into one, known as the ’Line Drawing’ technique.

Compared to ’Western-style Heavy Color’ painting,

if ’Western-style Heavy Color’ is like knitting a sweater, weaving Chinese painting and oil painting threads together.

Then ’Line Drawing’ is like the maid Qingwen skillfully mending Jia Baoyu’s coat in ’Dream of the Red Chamber,’ decorating the cloak with sketching, a fine ’peacock gold thread.’

Aside from the difficulty of this painting technique, it demands greater proficiency in brushwork.

”Chinese painting is the soul, oil painting is the flesh, sketching is the skeleton, none can be wrong.”