A brush with reunification

In the wake of the provocative trip that violated the commitments the US had made to Beijing on upholding the one-China principle, the mainland undertook unprecedented countermeasures, such as conducting live-fire drills around the island.

Chen for the first time sensed war was in her backyard and was angry that some politicians had welcomed Pelosi's trip. "Anger and sadness drove me to draw, and a strong sense of helplessness made me grit my teeth and stay up late to finish this artwork," she said.

Chen finished her drawing just hours after Pelosi's plane landed, and it went viral instantly, being shared by many people on both sides of the Strait as it advocates keeping the shadow of war away.

The top portion of the picture shows Pelosi wearing a pink suit, her mouth painted bright red to indicate she was sucking Taiwan people's blood. Behind her, a tank with a slightly damaged Ukrainian flag suggested she was a warmonger.

In the middle of the drawing, Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen is shown standing surrounded by smoke, a rocket launcher on her shoulder, and her hands tied by a puppet string held by Pelosi.

Explaining her painting, Chen said: "Tsai's administration is controlled by the US. Whatever the US asks them to do, they must do, and this is harming the Taiwan people."

At the bottom of the artwork is a little girl holding an incense stick and kneeling in prayer in front of a US plane. The idea is to criticize those in Taiwan who were excited by Pelosi's visit, and were treating her as some god, Chen said.

Chen said some of her ignorant friends expressed excitement at Pelosi's visit and welcomed her, without realizing the impact and harm it would have on cross-Strait ties. "I felt it was my responsibility to speak up against this provocation," she said.

In fact, Chen said, the kneeling girl in her painting also stands for the silenced Taiwan people who cannot express themselves freely.

"We pray, but we cannot beg the shadow of war to leave our homes. All I could do was to draw this to express my anger," she said.