Kaohsiung Aiao Elementary School principal Ouyang Kuo-jung (歐陽國榮) has made more than 150 artistic creations with painted rocks.
Ouyang, who specialized in teaching arts and crafts at Pingtung Normal University of Education, said he started painting rocks years ago after running over one with his car leaving work.
Feeling something under his tire, he got out of the car to check, and found a funny oblong rock that he picked up and took home, Ouyang said.
Photo courtesy of Ouyang Kuo Jung
After looking at the rock for some time, he realized that it resembled a shoe and was nearly identical to one in size, so he proceeded to paint it to look like a canvas shoe, Ouyang said.
Several friends visiting his home were deceived by the imitation shoe and did not realize it was made of stone until he told them to pick it up, Ouyang said, adding that the creation sparked his interest in making art out of rocks.
In the eight years since, Ouyang’s painted rocks have populated his school office, as well as the cabinets, staircase, and other nooks and crannies at his home.
His creations include tiger, lion and lamb figurines; miniature landscapes of a mountain, house and waterfall; and statutes of mythical figures such as Zen Buddhism founder Bodhidharma and Zhong Kui (鍾馗), a vanquisher of ghosts and evil spirits in Taoist folklore.
The rock’s veins and shape decide what will be made out of it, Ouyang said.
“The important thing is seeing what the rock resembles,” he added.
Ouyang said that he usually scrutinizes the rock before it choosing it for painting.
For example, his gorilla figurine was created out of a stone that was narrow on the top and broad on the bottom, as it was evocative of the animal’s shape, while another rock was perfect for imitating a view of the countryside as seen through the window of a bus, he said.
Painting rocks is a calming exercise that has trained him to see subtle differences, appreciate the beauty of nature and become a better teacher, Ouyang said.
“Each child is unique and created differently; the main job of educators is to find the goodness in each student, appreciate their talent and help them develop that talent,” he said.
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