Chongqing, March 3 (CNS) -- Taiwan's "Generation Z" Chongqing Entrepreneurship: Helping Illustration Art "Grow Freely"

Zhong Yi, reporter of China News Network

"If in traditional art, the distance between the artist and the audience is two or three steps 'far away', then illustration is 'half a step'. The audience can more intuitively understand the emotions that the illustrator wants to express. On the 22nd, when the reporter walked into the "Free Growth" art store located in Chongqing's Shancheng Alley, Liu Zhenglin, who was introducing illustrations to customers, said.

Born in 1996, Liu Zhenglin is from Taitung, Taiwan. Since "landing" at the end of 2019, he and his brother have taken root in Chongqing, gradually built the largest illustration art center in mainland China, and signed nearly <> illustration artists at home and abroad, "looking forward to adding strength to the development of Chongqing's culture and art through the dissemination of illustration art".

The picture shows customers selecting illustrations in an art store. Photo by Zhong Yi

Enter Shancheng Alley, walk more than 130 meters, you can see a three-story building in the style of a stilt building. As a <>-square-meter space integrating illustration, handicraft sales and coffee leisure, quaint wooden windows, old stairs and trendy art collide continuously, climbing high and overlooking, the wind hunting in your ears, and the green coral dam on the Yangtze River... It attracts many tourists to check in as a souvenir.

"Specializing in illustration displays, the purpose is to subvert everyone's impression of 'painting'." Flat painting, watercolor, colored lead, oil painting... Liu Zhenglin treasures the thousands of works consigned in the store. In his view, illustrators use rich colors and diverse forms to construct a "universe" that is either innocent or healing; Illustration has a natural trend culture and affordable price, and in the fast-paced era, it caters to the aesthetics of young people, which can be described as "art that everyone can afford", and gradually occupies a world in the art market.

The reporter saw at the scene that the specifications of the illustrations vary in size, with prices ranging from tens of yuan to tens of thousands of yuan, and enthusiasts can buy them according to their spending power. "As the cultural atmosphere of the city grows, more and more people like illustration. At most, a customer buys fifty or sixty at a time. Liu Zhenglin said that promoting consumption and popularization through exhibition, and letting more citizens know the category of illustration and the artist group behind it has always been the direction of the brothers' efforts.

The picture shows customers selecting illustrations in an art store. Photo by Zhong Yi

As a "Generation Z", Liu Zhenglin is an entrepreneur full of "fantastic ideas". After graduating from Taipei University with a degree in Food and Beverage Management, he worked as a chef for six years, bringing with him the craft of making creative coffee. "Orchid Island Boy", "Sea of Oranges", "Sunset", "Heartbeat"... Liu Zhenglin is good at combining espresso with milk, fruits, flowers, red wine, spices, etc., changing everyone's stereotype of coffee as "bitter" and adding artistic flavor to drinks. Maintaining the frequency of updating the menu every three months, it has developed more than 30 special coffee varieties.

"I stay in the store five or six days a week. This place is very similar to Taiwan's Jiufen, and the small but beautiful slow life makes me feel close. Talking about living in Chongqing, Liu Zhenglin, who "has taken Chongqing as his second hometown", said that he loves Chongqing's topography and humanities, and people's warmth and tolerance. In his free time, he learns from his new Chongqing friends, participates in marathons of tens of thousands of people, climbs Nanshan Mountain, visits flower markets and eats hot pot. Perhaps the biggest change is the change in breakfast from sandwiches and egg cakes to Chongqing noodles, oil tea, and dumplings.

"Man cannot be restrained, he should grow freely." Liu Zhenglin said that being curious about life and keeping a love for life is his life credo. It was like starting in Chongqing and really starting to learn about the mainland exciting.

"This summer, many of my Taiwanese friends plan to come to Chongqing." Liu Zhenglin said that he has begun to prepare a tour guide, taking friends for a walk and a look. Of course, "I am very happy to start a business in the mainland", and I am most looking forward to having more partners join. (End)