CHINA DAILY HONG KONG EDITION Wednesday, August 22, 2018 CHINA 7 University to launch course on gaming studies By WANG KEJU in Beijing and ZHOU LIHUA in Wuhan A university in Wuhan, capi­ tal of Hubei province, plans to join the growing number of Chinese colleges offering a course on electronic games, as the nation looks to fill the tal­ ent gap in the rapidly develop­ ing industry. Huazhong University of Science and Technology’s course — introduction to game studies — will be availa­ ble from September next year and will interpret games from an academic perspective, said Xiong Shuo, a lecturer at the university’s School of Journal­ ism and Information Com­ munication. Farmer artists work on a giant painting of peonies for the venue of the 18th Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Qingdao, Shandong province. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY “Many young people are very interested in games but don’t understand what a game is,” Xiong, 30, said. “The course won’t train stu­ dents to play games but will Painters help lift county out of poverty introduce issues related to vid­ eo game research and develop­ ment, technology, industry and psychology.” More than 15,000 farmers practice the gongbi art style across Shandong’s Juye county Xiong has been a video game fan since he was 4 years old, and he is keen on invent­ By ZHAO RUIXUE in Jinan ing games. He could not afford [email protected] a travel chess game when he was in primary school, so he Huang Guigui held two cut pieces of cardboard into brushes — one with pigment small cards and drew on them, and the other with water — in creating his own version. her right hand as she painted “At that time, I thought to a peony flower in the Chinese myself that I not only want to realist style known as gongbi. play games but also share But her hands did not look interesting ideas with others like those of a painter, and for and bring happiness to more good reason. people,” Xiong said. Only two years ago she was But when Xiong was admit­ a farmer. She quit working in ted to Huazhong University’s the fields and sublet her con­ Computer Science Depart­ tracted land to become a pro­ ment in 2007, he discovered fessional painter working for there was next to nothing in the Luxi art academy in Juye his major related to the study county, Shandong province. of games. That’s when he “The earnings from farm­ decided to pursue further land are no more than 10,000 study in Japan after gradua­ yuan ($1,460) a year, just a tion. tenth of what I can earn from A professional painter (third from left) teaches farmers to draw peony flowers in the gongbi art A farmer painter holds two brushes —one with pigment and the Japan was then the world painting,” she said. “More style at a painting academy in Juye county. other with water — to paint peony flowers. leader in the video game importantly, painting is a industry, and Xiong said he more decent job, and I love it.” wanted to bring its experience Huang, in her 30s, had nobility. Heze has a history of where there are large num­ more she even paid for addi­ their peony paintings have Gao Tanyin, 51, one of the and advanced methods back worked part­time for the peony cultivation dating back bers of tourists. tional training courses in big­ been chosen as national gifts five farmer painters who pro­ to China. academy from 2011 before 1,400 years. The cooperative’s brisk ger cities. for foreign dignitaries. duced the work for the SCO He returned to Huazhong deciding to make it her full­ People in Juye, part of business gradually encour­ The village art academies A recent magnum opus summit and a member of the University as a teacher this time career. Heze, saw how paintings aged a lot of farmers to have won support from the from Juye’s farmer artists was China Artists Association, year after six years in Japan, There are many farmer­ could be turned into an become part­time painters, county government, which a giant painting of peonies for said a painting class will be where he earned a PhD. painters in Juye, which is income. In 1974, a workshop and Juye county is now home considers them “a good way the venue of the 18th Shang­ held in Juye this year for peo­ “Many students will be famous for its paintings of was established to produce to about 50 art academies, to lift farmers out of poverty”, hai Cooperation Organization ple from outside Shandong, involved in the game industry peony flowers. items such as Easter eggs each one usually based in a according to He Xizhen, summit in Qingdao, Shand­ and applications have been either through employment or According to official data, decorated with hand­painted single village. director of the county’s pover­ ong, in June that has been rolling in. investment, as the industry is more than 15,000 farmers animal or scenic patterns for Luxi art academy, in Liu­ ty alleviation office. called China’s largest gongbi County authorities are also developing into a backbone of practice gongbi in more than export. By the time it closed guantun village, has more County authorities hold painting. Standing 15.5 trying to cultivate more the entertainment industry,” 50 villages in Juye. The mar­ in 1978, the workshop had than 600 farmer artists who free painting classes for farm­ meters tall and 4.2 meters national­class artists as well he said. “I want to cultivate ket for their art has been trained hundreds of people paint outside the farming sea­ ers and organize promotional wide, it depicts 218 peony as helping local academies more talent for the future growing rapidly, and last year as painters. son, according to Xu Fengqiu, events to help the academies flowers and took five artists 77 build their painting brands gaming development of our their paintings sold for 500 The closure of the work­ the academy’s founder. They expand their markets, He days to complete. and expand markets. country.” million yuan. shop drove most of the paint­ mostly produce paintings of said. Wang Dong, Juye’s Party “The painting industry is According to the 2017 China It all started in the 1970s, ers back to their farms, but peonies. Paintings created by Juye secretary, said it is ready to one of our major ways to revi­ Game Industry Development when many artists flocked to some founded a privately To improve their skills, the farmers have been sold to help people outside the coun­ talize the rural area,” Wang Report, the industry’s annual the city of Heze to paint peon­ owned cooperative that pro­ academy invites professional more than 10 countries and ty, in the hope that painting said. “We will try our best to revenue that year was 219 bil­ ies, which are viewed in China duced paintings for sale in cit­ painters to train the farmers. regions, according to official can also help increase their take the industry to a higher lion yuan ($34.6 billion), put­ as representing elegance and ies such as Xi’an and Beijing, Huang was so keen to learn statistics, and He said some of incomes. level.” ting China hot on the heels of the United States, the world leader, on $36 billion. Zhang Yangqing, a post­ Around China graduate student at the Wuhan university’s School of Computer Science and Tech­ HEBEI at the car as it drove away, GUIZHOU arrived at the scene in the Zhang to react in a suggestive other passengers were asked nology, said: “I love playing Girl hurt by rock shattering the back window Neighbors save city’s Yunyan district and res­ manner. Zhang later called to get out of the car and take a games and am really looking thrown at car and hitting the girl in the balcony jumper cued her. police to report Zhu. public bus home. forward to working at a game head. The girl was treated for KANKANNEWS.COM JIANGSU TV DAHE DAILY company when I graduate. a bleeding wound to her head The course will help me a lot at the scene. JIANGSU HENAN SICHUAN in having more profound THEPAPER.CN Woman molested Police find two Grandma beats knowledge about my future job.” in film ruse boys in car trunk pregnant nurse SHAANXI When watching the closing Driver fails to water A man, surnamed Zhu, who A woman who beat a preg­ ceremony of the Rio 2016 molested a woman he hired to nant nurse after she gave her Olympic Games in Brazil, down offense act in a video has been placed grandson an injection was put Xiong was amazed by an A man, surnamed Li, tried to in a Zhenjiang detention in detention for 10 days and eight­minute video showcas­ avoid testing positive for house for five days and fined fined 200 yuan ($30) in Nan­ ing the next host city, Tokyo, drunken driving by downing 1,000 yuan ($145). Zhu, who chong on Aug 11. The grand­ in which Japanese Prime two bottles of mineral water claimed to be shooting a video mother, in her 60s, became Minister Shinzo Abe dressed and staying in a public rest­ A young woman who jumped to publicize the need to pro­ angry and pushed the nurse, as video game character Mar­ room for half an hour. Traffic from the balcony of her fifth­ tect women on public trans­ Traffic police found two young surnamed Peng, to the ground io to introduce Japan to the police stopped Li for driving floor home in Guiyang at portation, published a want boys hidden in the trunk of a after her grandson cried loud­ world.