Zhang Weng at work in his studio, on Nov 24 [Photo by Cui Liying/dtnews.cn]

One artist and city planner in the city of Datong, Shanxi province, has definitely been a great contributor to the city's modernization, its landscape, its environment, and its art by blending his own urban aesthetic views and ideals with the city planning.

Zhang Weng, who is now in his 70s, is still involved in things such as repairing city walls, city planning, sculpture exhibitions, and a range of other cultural activities, and is the honorary president of the city arts association, director of its planning bureau, and director of its history and culture committee.

Zhang began the study of art at an early age, in fine arts, urban planning and, later, environmental design as his career. He now does colored ink work in his spare time and gets most of his inspiration from his hometown, Datong, for example, the patterns and art of the Yungang Grottoes, the seasonal changes, the plateaus, or the folk houses. He said he found great pleasure in using his paintbrushes to recall his memories and had his own exhibition at the National Art Museum, in Beijing, in April 2009, wining a lot of applause, as Datong's first artist to ever hold an exhibition there.

He began work on the urban landscape in the 1980s, with an expectation that every bridge, body of water, and green patch could show Datong's attitude, and its uniqueness. He also stresses practicality in his work and is currently organizing the overall greening and ecology, providing a solid foundation for Datong's becoming an ecological city.

Edited by Roger Bradshaw