Graphic novelist Uen Cheng (鄭問), best known for his realistic artwork, prolific work ethic and mentorship of fellow artists, died on Sunday of a heart attack at the age of 58, according to one of his former students.
Minister of Culture Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) said Uen Cheng’s creations are an inspiration to a generation of Taiwanese artists, adding that the ministry would apply for a posthumous presidential commendation for his vital contributions to manga, animation and video games.
Uen Cheng was creating artwork for one of his projects moments before suffering a heart attack at 3am on Sunday, said Chung Meng-shun (鍾孟舜), one of Uen Cheng’s former students.
Photo: courtesy of Dala Publishing Company
Born Cheng Chin-wen (鄭進文), Uen Cheng had worked as a professional graphic artist since his 20s.
He enjoyed a meteoric rise in the comic book world, where he distinguished himself with his realistic style that blazed trails, spawned many imitators and attracted students.
The martial arts adventures Sword of Avici (阿鼻劍) and Heroes of the East Zhou Dynasty (東周英雄傳) are generally considered to be among Uen Cheng’s finest, with Heroes being the first creation by a foreign artist to win an award from the Japanese Cartoonists’ Association.
Dala Publishing Co editor-in-chief Aho Huang (黃健和) said Uen Cheng made an international impact as a Taiwanese manga artist.
In the 1990s, Uen Cheng became the first Taiwanese artist to have artwork successfully serialized in Japan, Huang said, adding that Hong Kong film producers had obtained the movie rights to Sword of Avici.
Uen Cheng in 2012 participated in France’s prestigious Angouleme International Comics Festival and had this year completed negotiations for the publication of his works in Southeast Asia and Europe, with his work to be translated into Thai and German, he added.
Chung, who is now a successful graphic artist and president of the Taipei Comic Artist Labor Union, said he remembers his mentor as a gifted artist, an aloof man and a passionate friend.
Uen Cheng once personally managed the day-to-day business of a charity sales stall to raise cancer treatment funds for a fellow artist and rushed with a baseball bat in hand to the rescue of a friend who got into trouble, Chung said.
“He was a unique man, heroic and larger than life. The last chapter of a legend has closed,” Chung said.
‘NON-RED’: Taiwan and Ireland should work together to foster a values-driven, democratic economic system, leveraging their complementary industries, Lai said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed hopes for closer ties between Taiwan and Ireland, and that both countries could collaborate to create a values-driven, democracy-centered economic system. He made the remarks while meeting with an Irish cross-party parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan. The delegation, led by John McGuinness, deputy speaker of the Irish house of representatives, known as the Dail, includes Irish lawmakers Malcolm Byrne, Barry Ward, Ken O’Flynn and Teresa Costello. McGuinness, who chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, is a friend of Taiwan, and under his leadership, the association’s influence has grown over the past few years, Lai said. Ireland is
A saleswoman, surnamed Chen (陳), earlier this month was handed an 18-month prison term for embezzling more than 2,000 pairs of shoes while working at a department store in Tainan. The Tainan District Court convicted Chen of embezzlement in a ruling on July 7, sentencing her to prison for illegally profiting NT$7.32 million (US$248,929) at the expense of her employer. Chen was also given the opportunity to reach a financial settlement, but she declined. Chen was responsible for the sales counter of Nike shoes at Tainan’s Shinkong Mitsukoshi Zhongshan branch, where she had been employed since October 2019. She had previously worked
TRANSPORT DISRUPTION: More than 100 ferry services were suspended due to rough seas and strong winds, and eight domestic flights were canceled, the ministry said Tropical Storm Wipha intensified slightly yesterday as it passed closest to Taiwan, dumping more than 200mm of rain in Hualien and Taitung counties, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 11am, Wipha was about 210km southwest of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) and was moving west-northwest at 27km per hour (kph). The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 101kph and gusts reaching 126kph, with a 150km radius of strong winds, CWA data showed. Wipha’s outer rainbands began sweeping across Taiwan early yesterday, delivering steady rainfall in the east and scattered showers in other regions, forecasters said. More heavy rain was expected, especially in the eastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity