Beijing 2008 Olympic mascots designer dies
- By Zhang Rui
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E-mail China.org.cn, December 22, 2022
Wu Guanying, renowned Chinese illustrator, picture book artist and professor at the Academy of Arts & Design of Tsinghua University (AADTHU), died on Tuesday in Beijing. He was 67.
Wu, a professor in the Department of Information Art & Design of AADTHU, was born in 1955 in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, and found his life's passion when he was a child. He enrolled in the Central Institute of Arts and Crafts — which later became AADTHU — in 1978 to study book decoration and design, and went on to teach design and illustration after graduating in 1982. He retired from AADTHU in November last year.
He was one of the principal artists behind the creation of the Fuwa mascots for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, as well as the chief designer of the Fu Niu Lele mascot for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. His other iconic artistic creations include commemorative coins to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 2019, as well as many special commemorative stamps and coins for Chinese New Year. He was also one of the most prolific designers for China Post.
Wu was also a cartoonist and comic strip creator, with renowned works including the animated series "Flying Monkid," and comics adapted from the classic novels "Cousin Pons" by Honoré de Balzac and "The Red and the Black" by Stendhal.
Whether on the university grounds or traveling the world, the award-winning artist always had his sketchbook and brush ready to capture and immortalize the scenes around him. When it came to teaching, Wu believed his most important role was to open the eyes of his students so that they could see and appreciate life.
On Dec. 9, Wu made his last post on Weibo microblog account, where he posted a photo of the door of his home on which there was a note with a cute rabbit sketch telling delivery persons where to put his mail and packages amid the recent COVID-19 resurgence. He captioned the photo: "We have to be careful."
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