From Village Boy to Influential 3D Street Painter

This is the 349th China Mosaic ↑

You’re riding your bike, and suddenly a huge crater pops up right before you. You then see an archway, go straight ahead but end up bumping into a wall. 

Look more closely! Your eyes can be deceiving!

These 3D street paintings were all created by Zhang Shixian, a young man from a village in southeast China. Zhang has been a passionate painter all his life. 

Zhang Shixian and his wall painting

This one time, he grabbed a piece of burnt firewood while using his stove and scribbled on the ground. To his surprise, the charcoal totally echoed with the cement ground that is commonly found in the countryside. Zhang taught himself the ins and outs of 3D street paintings on the internet. 

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After practicing many times on paper, he began to paint out his creativity on the “streets”. Charcoal and chalks are all that he needs in his tool kit, while different sites in his village are his canvas. Digging a hole in the country road, destroying a bridge, or building a staircase… Sometimes, he can even merge the surroundings seamlessly into his painting, turning it into a highlight. 

The 3D street paintings I know of are mostly bright and colorful ones and found in urban areas, so I think Zhang has added a new derivative to it: 3D village paintings. 

With creativity, just the right dose of “rural elements”, and the support and appreciation of his fellow villagers, Zhang’s artwork has gone viral, and not only in China. On TikTok, his videos have gained him more than 627k followers and over 9.3 million likes from all over the world. 

TikTok comments

After finding out that he has become an actual influencer, Zhang said he will keep painting, keep chasing his dream, and hopes his videos can inspire more people. 

Besides his creativity and passion, Zhang’s short videos also offered a peek into rustic Chinese country life. But he’s not the only one. In a previous episode, I told the story of YouTuber Li Ziqi and her idyllic life.

screenshot from YouTube

 In China, a vlogger named “Classmate Zhang” also went viral recently, with his funny videos evoking nostalgic memories of “unsophisticated” village life. 

Classmate Zhang's vlog

The three internet influencers, though each depicting a different rural lifestyle, have all recorded quiet and serene country life, and reflected people’s optimism.

In the past, austere environments and the poverty that usually goes with it seemed to have been a barricade on the road to happiness. But with extreme poverty eradicated, building a better countryside is now an unstoppable trend, meaning more people are pursuing their hobbies and sharing their lives with others through short videos. 

I believe we will see more influencers recording their touching and inspiring stories to come.

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