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Zhang was born the son of a gardener in 1907 in Xujiahui, then a suburb of Shanghai, China. The young Zhang lost both his parents at an early age and grew up in an orphanageThis article is about the institutions for orphans. For the band, see Orphanage (band). An orphanage is an institution dedicated to caring for orphans (children without living parents). Orphanages often attempt to find homes for children in their care.. At the age of seven, he entered the Tushanwan Art School, a FrenchThe French Third Republic (in French, Troisieme Republique sometimes written as IIIeme Republique ( 1870/ 75- 1940/ 46), was the governing body of France between the Second French Empire and the Fourth Republic. It was a republican parliamentary democracy religious establishment, where he learnt FrenchFrench le francais la langue francaise is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered only by Spanish and Portuguese. French is the 11th most spoken language in the world, spoken by about 77 million people (called Francophones) as a mother to, drawing and was systematically indoctrinated into Western art. After finishing schooling in 1928Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 See also 1928 in aviation 1928 in film 1928 in literature 1928 in mu, Zhang worked in design for the film industry and a local newspaper. In 19311931 is the common year starting on Thursday. see link for calendar) Events January January 4 Female aviator Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa January 6 Thomas Edison submits his last patent application. January 22 Sir Isaac Isaacs sworn in as the, he left China for the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Belgium.
Hergé's early Tintin albums were highly dependant on stereotypes for 'comedic' effect. Russians ( Bolshewiks) and Americans were portrayed as evil, black Africans as lazy and dumb.
At the close of the newspaper run of Cigars of the Pharaoh, Hergé had mentioned that Tintin's next adventure ( The Blue Lotus) would bring him to China. Father Gosset, the chaplain to the Chinese students at the University of Louvain, wrote to Hergé urging him to be sensitive about what he wrote about China. Hergé agreed, and in the spring of 1934 Gosset introduced him to Zhang Chongren. The two young artists quickly became close friends, and Zhang introduced Hergé to Chinese history, culture, and the techniques of Chinese art. As a result of this experience, Hergé would strive in The Blue Lotus, and in subsequent Tintin adventures, to be meticulously accurate in depicting the places which Tintin visited.
As a token of appreciation, he added a fictional " Chong-chen Chang" to The Blue Lotus, a young Chinese boy who meets and befriends Tintin. Hergé mocks his own naïveté deep inside the album, when he tries to let Tintin explain to the fictional Chang that Zhang's fear for the 'white devils' is based on prejudice. He then recites a few Western stereotypes of the Chinese. This Chang will later return in Tintin in Tibet.
As another result of his friendship with Zhang, Hergé became increasingly aware of the problems of colonialism, in particular the Empire of Japan's advances into China. The Blue Lotus carries a bold anti-imperialist message, contrary to the prevailing view in the West, which was sympathetic to Japan and the colonial enterprise. As a result, it drew sharp criticism from various parties, including a protest by Japanese diplomats to the Belgian Foreign Ministry.