Almighty painter

Chapter 953 World Zoo

"Hey, Detective Cat, this world is a giant zoo."

—Mr. Sloth.
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Gu Weijing's trendy toy company is called "World General Store". The business operations are handled by Salman, a strong woman. With her connections from years of experience in business consulting, the company has reached a cooperation agreement with the famous Printemps department store in Paris as soon as it was founded.

The other party will act as their company's global distributor for its products.

Each of the three artists is responsible for a series of artwork IPs, which must be childlike, fun, and distinctive, so that customers can remember them.

"World General Store" only provides a very general theme—

"world."

Gu Weijing's art IP series is called "World Zoo", Sakai Kazunari's is called "World Food Hall", while Jane Arnold picked up his most proficient elements of various little fairies, elves, and flower fairies, and his art IP series is called "World Magic House".

This is an art series that focuses on childlike fun. The artist provides not only an IP character, but also a corresponding backstory.

The cat in the ornament is one of the main characters in Gu Weijing's art series "World Zoo".

Its name is "April 23".

April 23 is World Book Day, which is also the birthday of William Shakespeare and William Turner, so this cat has two forms.

In Mr. Sloth's vision, in the story series "You Know, the World Belongs to Cats", the protagonist "April 23" is a Persian cat who is a poet and playwright.

In the story series "But Sometimes, Dogs Are Kings of the World", the protagonist "April 23" is a golden retriever who is good at painting watercolors.

What they all have in common is that their bodies are covered in ink stains and spots.

The three artists will periodically update the background stories of their artwork IPs on their official website or in new work series, enriching the character images and coordinating a series of complex commercial promotion activities.

Gu Weijing sat on the sofa in the rented room.

I casually flipped through Kazunari Sakai's new work, "Yuki-onna" (Snow Woman).

In Japanese mythology, the Yuki-onna (snow woman) is a rather terrifying, smileless female demon. Kazunari Sakai's art IP series is called "World's Delicious Food," and his collectible toys are primarily childlike, so they're certainly not meant to scare people. In Sakai's artwork, however, it's depicted as a discounted creamy snowball ice cream in a store's frozen display window.

Its goal is to be eaten by humans before it completely melts away.

Gu Weijing glanced at the related background ideas and smiled.

He opened his notebook, clicked on a shared work document marked "April 23," and read it while constantly thinking. Occasionally, when he had a breakthrough, he would doodle a few lines in his sketchbook.

This issue's illustrated story is the first installment of their "But Sometimes, Dogs Are the Kings of the World" series of fairy tales.

The story of a dog who plans to become a great painter in the animal kingdom through his art exhibition.

Gu Weijing slowly began to read.

"a long long time ago……"
-
"a long long time ago……"

In Anna's own office on the farm, Miss Elena was facing the computer screen, holding a print in her hand.

"World Zoo"—that's the IP theme she suggested Detective Cat choose.

Animals are always a great theme in fairy tales.

Satirical stories often express the animalistic nature of humans, while fairy tales often express the humanistic nature of animals; the two seem to serve as a contrasting pair.

The print in Miss Elena's hand is the cover of "The Illustrated Satirical Magazine," a 19th-century print publication in Paris. A print like this, in such good condition, would probably be worth a few hundred euros.

Not expensive.

But it is very memorable.

Artists and writers love to record the times they live in in their own unique way. The piece of paper in Miss Elena's hand is a bookmark that turns the clock back to 1830.

The article in this pictorial was written by Balzac, and the print on the cover was illustrated by Balzac's close friend, J.J. Granville, who illustrated Robinson Crusoe and was a spiritual forerunner of Dali.

Balzac's works are extremely adept at using animal metaphors.

J.J. Granville was extremely skilled at drawing animal-related illustrations. In "The Illustrated Satirical Magazine," he attempted to animalize all the characters in Balzac's works, turning them into lions, sharks, birds, and snails, creating visual stories that everyone could understand.

Miss Elena hoped that the two of them would do the same thing.

Together with Detective Cat, she creates adult fairy tales that children can understand, which are both childlike and profound, just like... her favorite "The Little Prince".

She provided the story ideas, and Detective Cat was responsible for the illustrations.

As Anna pondered this, she noticed someone remotely adding annotations to a work document.

"I feel there's something missing in this story."

A line of text appeared on the screen, accompanied by a prompt indicating that the person who typed it was "Detective Cat" himself.

"What's the shortcoming?"

Anna put the magazine aside and, instead of opening her phone separately, replied directly to the shared work document.

"Without a self."

The yellow cursor belonging to Detective Cat blinked on the screen for a moment before replying.

"?"

Anna's blue cursor displayed a question mark.

“Cow, pig, leopard, tiger—not myself,” Detective Cat typed again.

Miss Elena understood a little of what the other party meant. The plot of the fairy tale they had come up with was not complicated. The dog "April 23" wandered around the animal kingdom to collect pictures and capture the characteristics of all kinds of animals. In the end, he held an art exhibition that everyone liked.

The detective cat was saying.

No.

In this fairy tale, there is one animal missing: April 23 herself.

"The Little Prince?" Detective Cat typed. "The Little Prince has his own story. There's a king, a fox, a geographer, and all sorts of other characters in the story. But he's always thinking, so he always exists."

"Our story—has no self."

"It's like a jigsaw puzzle, with each piece showing the image of an animal, but none of them have yourself on them."

The cursor is blinking on the computer screen.

……

In a rented room next to the Hamburg Academy of Fine Arts.

Gu Weijing typed on the screen: "Have you seen Sakai Kazunari's sketches? He only painted one picture, but all of his works are of himself."

"Wait a moment." Miss Elena paused slightly.

She picked up the folder and quickly flipped through it. Miss Elena realized that, not only "Snow Woman," but also, she guessed, that Kazunari Sakai had referenced the Slavic folk tale "Snow Princess" to some extent during the painting process.

In Muromachi period legends, the Yuki-onna (snow woman) is both intensely yearning for love and terrifyingly so; she tempts others and, in the instant of a kiss with a lost soul, sucks their soul away through her lips. The Slavic fairy tale's Snow Maiden is a snowman made of snow, devoid of human emotions, yet eventually imbued with feelings, falling in love, only to melt in the intense heat. Kazunari Sakai's story about eating sweets is far simpler than her tale with the detective cat.

The two have different working models.

Kazunari Sakai's main profession is neither an illustrator nor a children's fairy tale writer. He is not used to creating "comic strips" that use a single image to express a complex storyline.

He prefers to use a painting to capture a complex moment, or the complex emotions contained in that moment.

Miss Elena examined the story, and she seemed to see the spirit of a fat man who loved food.

"I agree."

Anna replied on the computer screen.

"The protagonist not only needs to discover the traits of different animals, but also needs to discover himself."

“How about letting him meet a cat? A cat judge who's hindering his art exhibition?” Gu Weijing suggested.

“A cat? April 23 was originally a cat too,” Anna typed.

"So, he also encountered himself. A cat is not a dog; a cat exists as a part of a dog," Detective Cat typed philosophically. "In The Little Prince, 'returning' is a return to one's true self. In our story, encountering a cat is seeing another side of ourselves."

Miss Elena pondered for a moment.

A cat that's blocking the art exhibition from moving forward.

“It can jump onto the canvas, tear it apart with its claws, and eat it like lasagna,” Anna suggested.

"'Want to paint?' said the cat on the canvas—"

Miss Elena typed on the computer screen as she read it aloud.

"You silly dog! So disobedient!"

She said.

Wang?
August, who was licking his fur on the carpet in front of Miss Elena, looked up in confusion and grievance at his mistress, let out a soft bark, and ran over.

Anna bent down and patted August's head, indicating that she wasn't talking about him.

Yes.

She wasn't talking about August.

This isn't about Detective Cat, nor is it about Gu Weijing... Miss Elena is talking about herself.

Was it Hugo or someone else who said that everyone has both cat-like and dog-like qualities within them?

Miss Elena harbored a cat within her that would tear apart all the works to which she had poured her heart and soul.

She felt those works were far from good enough.

Not good enough to win the applause of the whole world, not good enough to trample Deckard Allen underfoot.

After Gu Weijing left that day, Anna stayed in the yard and read "The Little Prince" all night long.

What is truly important to her?
An exhibition filled with flowers and applause proved that she was indeed a true "Miss Elena," with an eye for artists as discerning as the earls of the past.

Use this exhibition to prove that she is the true queen of art.

Or is it an art exhibition that will allow her to fully enjoy herself?

Is it the countless twinkling stars, or the one important star?
"Consider my advice; this kind of work is garbage. Consider the time you've invested, and carefully assess your own nature."

Anna was typing on the screen.

She wrote in Shakespeare's voice: "What can you gain from this painting? It is far from perfect... If you do not heed my advice, the power of the cat will descend upon you, and imagine yourself wandering the streets, enduring the cold stares of indifference."

"Only works bearing the mark of a cat will receive special favor from heaven. If I am not satisfied, then you will be forever ignored."

Miss Elena rebuked herself with sharp words.

She realized she was wrong.

She shouldn't always let Gu Weijing compromise with the opinions of outside critics, or let him compromise with those "cat marks".

Truly perfect works never exist.

She wanted Gu Weijing's paintings to please everyone, to have elements that would please everyone, but in the end... he lost himself in the process, and Miss Elena also lost her way.

The purpose of her becoming Gu Weijing's agent, from the very beginning, was to hope that Gu Weijing could completely ignore these external things, and not care about those disdainful looks and indifference, right?
If it were an art exhibition filled with flowers and applause, it would be covered with all sorts of cat-themed marks.

The only thing missing was any trace of Gu Weijing himself.

As a "solo art exhibition," it has to some extent lost all the connotation of personal talent, leaving only the speculation of the capital market.

Sarah inquired with the magazine "Oil Painting".

Today it is today.

Is "Oil Painting" a serious and solemn art criticism magazine, or a serious and solemn financial investment magazine?

this problem.

Miss Elena felt she also needed to ask herself questions.

Gu Weijing read the sentences on the screen.

Yes.

In these sentences, in the gaze of that proud cat judge, Gu Weijing sensed his own fear and hesitation. It wasn't like a reprimand of the dog in the fairy tale; Gu Weijing felt it was a voice within his own heart rebuking him.

why?
He might assume that life itself must be easy.

why.

Did he think that holding a solo art exhibition would guarantee everything would go smoothly? No matter what criticism he faced, no matter what difficulties he encountered, the doubts from various sponsors, the pressure within the gallery... wasn't this all that Gu Weijing should have been able to bear with his head held high?

all of these.

Didn't Cao Xuan also endure such hardship? Didn't Paul Cézanne, who waited 56 years for his first exhibition opportunity, also endure such hardship?
How could he possibly run away?
Escaping is such a cowardly act; it's unacceptable and intolerable. Burying your head in the sand and ignoring everything is a form of escapism, but conversely, giving up halfway through a painting, handing it in, and ignoring the consequences, is also escapism.

When facing life itself, the bravest thing to do is never to run away, just as the old man said. Between running away and charging forward, he will always be a bullfighter.

He typed on the screen.

"Go draw. Go draw," the dog said to itself.

Go and paint tirelessly.

"Until the end of time, until your work can dim the moon."

(End of this chapter)