Artist yaks lyrically on wildlife paradise

Meng Fanhua has been painting yaks for more than 10 years. [Palden Nyima/China Daily]

Unlike many other artists in the Tibet autonomous region who excel in painting flowers, birds, or landscapes, Meng Fanhua has dedicated his life to the subject of wild yaks.

"I believe the wildness and toughness of wild yaks exclusively embody the spirit of Tibet, and the Tibetan people," says the 48-year-old artist.

Meng's parents were from China's northeastern Liaoning province, but he was born in the Wulan county of Qinghai province.

Wulan is near Hoh Xil an uninhibited land on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which is known as a paradise of wildlife.

Meng has been painting yaks for more than 10 years, and his work and name have become well known in Tibet's art world.

"The general effect of his painting is overwhelming, lifelike. Its tremendous momentum is like the mountains of Tibet," says Ao Chao, deputy director of the Ethnic Art Research Institute of the Tibet autonomous region.

"The wild yak is a kind of wild product of nature. His paintings of wild yaks match perfectly with the vast prairie and snow mountains."

Meng has had a particular interest in drawing since his childhood. In order to pursue his career and his passion in painting, he took early retirement from the Water Resources Bureau of Wulan county, Qinghai province, in 2002 and came to Tibet alone.

Meng was instantly attracted by Tibet's fascinating landscape and incomparably rich traditional culture. He found it was an artistic heaven, the right place to seek his dreams, and he decided to stay.

By chance, Meng met Yu Youxin - a famous yak painter in Tibet - in 2005.

Meng found Yu's Chinese painting Ink and Wash of Yak really fascinating. After a series of repeated, sincere requests, Yu finally took him as his apprentice. That was the start of Meng's "yak trip".

Meng has been painting wild yaks since 2006. He says that he paints them because he wants to call on human beings to protect them, treasure life and value ecological conservation.