Feng Zikai

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Feng Zikai（1898-1975）is the father of modern Chinese comics.His drawings are highlyrecognizable-small，sketchy comics depicting warm moments in the countryside painted with a Chinese brush.Although his paintings are distinctly Chinese in style，he waseducated in Western art as a young man in Hangzhou.When he was 16 years old he was tutored by Li Shutong（see page 97），in whom he found a lifelong friend.Feng formed his comic style during the Anti-Japanese War，during which time he painted the cruelty of war-the death of women and children，people losing their homes，families torn apart-with limited resources，hence the simplistic，sketch-like style.After the war，his focus on everyday people never seemed to change.Throughout his life，the artist was dedicated to the seemingly insignificant but somehow touching moments in the lives of everyday people.His writing style pursued a similar vein of humor，elegance，and simplicity.A dedicated educator，Feng also wrote textbooks on music and art.

The Poetry of Hangzhou

West Lake is often considered the soul of Hangzhou，and，as such，poets have found its shores a perfect setting for their musings for centuries.Many of the lake’s famous sites make appearances in works of poetry throughout the ages.

Bai Juyi and His lady West lake

Bai Juyi，a poet of the Tang Dynasty，was the three-year governor of Hangzhou（see page 12）；of his 3，860 poems，more than 200 were about West Lake，making him perhaps the most prolific West Lake poet in history.Upon his departure，he wrote”Why can’t I leave Hangzhou easily？West Lake is half the reason.”Bai was also the first to explicitly characterize the lake as feminine.In his works，things like women’s belts and eyebrows were all metaphors for the lake，eventually earning the body of water the title，“Lake of Beauties”

The Hermit’s Hangzhou

Though not as famous as Bai Juyi，Lin Bu made his mark on the ancient literary scene with his love of West Lake.A poet of the Northern Song Dynasty，Lin Bu retired to Hangzhou to become a hermit.His poem”West Lake”states:“The water in the spring is clearer than a monk’s eyes；and the color of the mountains are as green as the head of the Buddha.”Lin，unlike many poets of his day，eschewed the mundane，earthly aesthetics of poetry.Never marrying，it was said that the cranes of the rivers were his children and the plum blossoms of the land his wife.So popular were his observations that West Lake was known as“Hermit Lake”in the Ming Dynasty.

Su Shi and the Song

During the Song Dynasty，West Lake truly emerged as the subject of pure beauty.Su Shi，one of the most influential poets of the age，was a government official in Hangzhou.One of his most popular poems posits a renowned Chinese metaphor.Su wrote:“If you wish to compare the lake in the West to the Lady of the West，lightly powdered or thickly smeared，the fancy is just as apt.”Xizi referred to Xishi，who ranked first among the renowned Four Beauties of Ancient China，and，like her，he believed West Lake looked beautiful regardless of season，giving the lake yet another nickname，”Xizi Lake”.