Michael Gregniec and his picture book creation in China

It is a great pleasure to share Michael’s new works here. I am very envious of Michael. He always wears the same pair of camouflage pants as the first time I saw him. When he took the floor as you see， how naturally he spoke. He is a true artist who brings himself back to the purest status of artist. If I were him， I would never appear in a pair of camouflage pants， sneakers， and casual shirt.

Then what did he spend his time on？ You can find the answer from the painting on both sides. When I stayed with him， I found that he is a very， very pure person. From his paintings we can feel that his temperament cannot be concealed. So I am very grateful to Mr. Zhang Qiulin， the President of 21st Century Publishing House， who introduced me to Mr. Michael Gregniec. Well， as the artist of children’s books， I think those engaged in children’s books in China should reflect： among these Eastern countries， the working spirit and style in South Korea and Japan are actually worthy of learning. They are professionals dedicated to without any distracting thoughts.

First of all， China’s economic growth rate is very fast， but there still exists a certain gap between our aesthetic sense and economic development. We can see that picture books published in Japan and South Korea in recent years are really deserving of our learning and careful consideration. Commendably， under such circumstance President Zhang Qiulin brought in some good picture books for us to appreciate. Moreover， he took a bigger step this time by directly inviting foreign painters to create in China. I am very lucky to have the opportunity to cornmunicafe with Michael in my studio. After seeing his paintings and profile I know that he was born in 1955. It is understandable for me to imagine he is a grizzled and bearded man. Unexpectedly， I found he is just as a big boy as Harry Porter when I met him in Nanjing.

Later， I realize that it is not surprising at all. It can be explained after you read his works such as Taste of the Moon， Rainbow Flowerand other representative works. You could feel that he is a person just like his paintings. So， his creation enables me to keenly aware why he paints like this.

As for the story， Michael’s works are all originating from his ideas. However， after reading his two newly published books， Chinese readers including myself found out a problem. We cannot accept these stories because we stick too much to the logic of picture books. We are excessively willing to raise picture books to a moral level. Furthermore， we are extremely keen to dig out the didactic contents in the book so as to provide good examples for children to learn from， such as good behaviors and deeds as well as the necessity to respect parents. Sometimes， reading in China is very utilitarian. Therefore， this way of reading desperately calls for a change.

His new book Ha Ha Ha， which has not been published yet， tell a story about a little tadpole who loses his tail. And I showed this book to my friends. We all raise a same question. Undoubtedly， I also discussed with Michael about it. I feel ashamed after hearing his answer. So what is our question？ We just do not understand why a tadpole would look for his tail which is supposed to be lost. That’s Chinese people’s way of thinking. Scientifically， tadpole’s tail is doomed to disappear as it grows up.

Michael explained that when this little tadpole lost his tail， he looked for it everywhere and after he finally found it， he felt extremely happy. When I put my question bluntly this morning that a tadpole would finally lose its tail from a scientific perspective， he asked a question in reply that why I would think about this question. He would never think of this question because this little tadpole has no idea that he would lose his tail in the future.

I think the reason why we asked this question is that we still stay in a utilitarian mind when reading picture books. Let me put it in another way. We hope what picture books tell would never go against the science. It had better be elevated to a moral level so that children would change their bad habits after reading. In my opinion， it may be too much for picture books. Therefore， as we all see， Michael is a very happy and casual person whose picture books also offer us the same experience and feelings. He excludes a lot of things.

As Mr. Du Shang put it， “what I am doing is exactly just for fun”， so does Michael. You know in my studio live three cats. When he came， he held them together to take pictures. I have never tried to do such thing. What he did is so great！ He just thinks that cats are so funny and very interesting. He is more willing to play like a kid and get close to little animals. As a picture books creator in China， I am deeply infected by his spirit. He once mentioned that he wanted to cooperate with me. But my way of thinking and mode of creativity is so far from Michael， so I need more to learn.

The drawings in his two picture books Ha Ha Ha and A Sleepy Snake look very coarse， but his meticulous rough drafts would never disappoint you. Though contradictory as it is， his rough brush stroke changes from color， light and shadow. It also contains clips. Moreover， he keeps improving his work by repeatedly modifying his proposals. My request to visit his studio in Nanchang is rejected for the reason that it is very， very messy. It is completely understandable that he， as an artist， has his own ideas and is willing to present me the best instead of semi-finished product. Though he cares little about what he wears such as this camouflage pants and shoes I saw for many times， the work he presents would be the most perfect one.

Let us take a look at A Sleepy Snake. How beautiful the night scene he portrayed！ The pigments he used look like Chinese gouache. But what he felt is inadaptable in China. Why？ Because in Japan pigments and papers for drawing are of very good quality. But sometimes it would be so difficult and uncomfortable if we fail to buy imported pigments and papers. He bought less satisfactory made-in-China pigments which generates an unexpectedly good result. The pigments are not very uniform in color and papers are far from satisfying. Despite such circumstance， he adopted the way of rubbing by using stones and soils and achieved extraordinary effect. I think it is very interesting. As you can see in his A Sleepy Snake， he has reach a very high level in art.

His works are worthy of learning by Chinese picture books creators. Probably， many friends have rare chance to read his original works at ordinary time. So today it is a good opportunity for us to appreciate his original works and their copies. Here I have to emphasize that I specifically compare the original with its copies. My conclusion is that 21st Century Publishing House really spent a lot of time and efforts in printing these copies so that nearly eighty or ninety percent of the original has been reproduced. Honestly， some colors are very difficult to print， but most have been presented. As one of his first readers， I think there is still much to be improved. But as his first picture book in China， it is really pretty good.

Another book Ha Ha Ha is not open to public for some reasons， but it is good as A Sleepy Snake. His painting techniques bring him back to a state of children which is hard to express especially for a grown-up. The difficulty for anto draw in a childlike way and bear a childlike heart is unimaginable. If you are assumed in a coy manner， it would not be fun. For Michael， he really put himself into this pure mind. To be honest， it is really remarkable for him to combine such delicate and genuine feelings with seemingly coarse drawing. Hence， I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to Michael to accept fo do original works and make their debut in China. Of course， I am also very grateful to President Zhang Qiulin for offering us this opportunity to enjoy the original work and witness the advent of its printing copies and bringing us such a brilliant feast. We all together strive for a common goal and promote the development of picture books in China so that Chinese readers including parents will be able to see more good ones.

At last， I would like to express my sincere thanks to Michael and President Zhang. Thank you again！