Word Art

The beauty of the written word is celebrated here like no where else.  Here are two displays of artistic calligraphy, all for sale.  One is in the antique market, but the other was near my bus stop.

Practicing Calligraphy

On the counter of her father’s commemorative coin booth at the antique market, this girl practices calligraphy on old newspapers.

Calligrapher

In another upstairs room at the antique market, this calligrapher labors, oblivious to the buying and selling all around him.

Studio Painting

These Chengdu artists celebrate the beauty of nature in colors maybe seen only in their imaginations.  Who would guess that these natural scenes were all created inside small upstairs rooms in the antique market?

Butterflies are Free

Chengdu is home to a wide assortment of beautiful butterflies.  I wonder what draws them here?

Snowy Egret

One day I missed my bus by just a minute or two.  I took the opportunity to wander around the bus stop area.  What a wonderful surprise to find in the center of the city’s technical zone a large pond, complete with a snowy egret!

 

Fall Colors in Chengdu

I grew up in New Jersey, USA.  Autumn is the most splendid season there, when deciduous trees’ greens change to brilliant yellows, oranges and reds before their leaves, splendidly, carpet the ground.  What a wonderful surprise that here in Chengdu, we have a hint of fall colors in our own garden.

Delightful Doufu

In the past, I have found tofu to be too chewy and to have an unpleasant aftertaste.  But the tofu (doufu) in Southern China is the consistency of the lightest, airiest custard.  With spicy toppings, it is a splendid snack.  This man prepares it in his mobile kitchen, in a small alcove between sports equipment shops.  I often see him on my daily walk between Mandarin class and my metro (subway) stop.  I can’t pass him without buying a paper cup of his delightful doufu!

Reused Rags

These mops are a simple, clever, and somewhat charming way to re-use old rags.  I hope I can learn to make these.

Hand Shadows

As a child, and later as a young mother, I played around occasionally with casting hand shadows on the wall.  I didn’t realize that in China, casting hand shadows has long been a well developed art from.  In the transitions between the different shadows, the artist’s hands dance gracefully.