Wearing an umbrella hat and a dark blue outdoor jacket, Lian Da sits quietly on a tiny folding chair in the overgrown wilderness of Shanxi province. With a black pen and a whiteboard, he gazes at the relic in front of him for hours and sketches its remaining glory.

Often accompanied by nothing other than the suspicious looks of passers-by, the mosquitoes buzzing with hunger, and occasionally a curious wild cat, Lian has devoted himself to this cause for almost two decades. Ever since his early 20s, he has traveled to Shanxi every year to record the fading ancient architecture there.

"They have been in existence for 1,000 years, but we have only four or five hours gazing at each other," says Lian, speaking of his motivation for enduring the hardship and solitude.

"The reason why I give priority to the collapsing ones is because I may not have the opportunity to see them any more. Time and tide wait for no man."

Lian's odyssey began in 1999, when the 21-year-old man first left his hometown in northeastern China to "see the world".

"Having not seen much ancient architecture growing up, I was instantly captivated when I first visited the historical sites," says Lian.

During his stop in Beijing, Lian met a stranger from Shanxi province whose inadvertent remark about the rich cultural heritage of Shanxi changed the course of his life.

Without a clear travel destination, Lian at once decided to go to Shanxi.

Partly in awe of the exquisiteness of the architecture, and partly because he could not afford a camera, Lian bought a pen and a notebook and started recording what he saw.

"It was more doodling than sketching," says Lian, explaining that he has had no professional training in painting or architecture.

Lian's drawing style is largely influenced by the picture story books which he often traced by hand as a child.

"I like the clean and neat line drawing style. It can highlight the main object of the scene, since the surroundings of the architecture can be chaotic," says Lian.

"As for the drawing techniques, I could only learn these from hard work and practice.

"I never aimed to go far in art. I always position myself as an ancient architecture enthusiast, and sketching is merely a way of expression.

"And rather than traveling for days to arrive at a historical site and leave in half an hour, I prefer sitting there for hours, just to keep it company."

Lian is constantly faced with people's incomprehension.

During his travels, he is often mistaken as a thief of cultural artifacts and is therefore shunned by villagers. And sometimes when the villagers refuse to drive him to the town center before dark, he has had to sleep in a dilapidated temple surrounded by coffins.

Even now, although his deeds have been publicized by various media organizations, he is sometimes attacked on the internet for being irresponsible for his family, while in fact, what Lian is most proud of is having a loving family that supports his cause - his wife Wang Hui in particular.

"We were in a relationship for seven years before getting married, and I took her to hike along the Great Wall many times.

"When we were in the wild, we went through thick and thin together like comrades-in-arms. That is why she supports me so much."

In Wang's eyes, Lian is, in fact, "a home-loving family man".

She says: "As someone easily satisfied, I feel quite content that he could maintain our current living conditions with his hobby. It's priceless how his endeavor could be recognized by so many people."

As the Great Wall holds such significance to both of them, they hosted an ecological and economic wedding on the Great Wall in 2007, with 40 or so friends from an online forum for fellow enthusiasts.

After getting married, Lian reduced his Shanxi journey to strictly two months a year, one in spring and one in autumn, in order to take care of his family.

For the rest of the year, Lian is a freelance illustrator who has published four books about his journeys, which include his sketches and his compilation of the information on the historical sites.

Though he sees himself an "ordinary person", Lian is recognized by some of China's most prestigious professionals, one of them being Qi Dongfang, a professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University.

In Lian's 2017 book Xunfang Shanxi Gumiao (Visiting Ancient Temples in Shanxi), the foreword was written by Qi.

In the foreword, Qi describes Lian as a "kindred spirit" though the two have never met, saying, "Lian's paintings are commendable for they bear a resemblance to reality in both form and spirit. I can see that Lian has a deep understanding and knowledge of ancient architecture.

"Although Lian's individual strength is meager, he may be able to inspire more people to join in the cause."

Lian says he has visited every county in Shanxi province, yet he plans to go back.

"It is impossible to paint all the ancient architecture in one or two visits. And I also want to redo my unsatisfactory works. After all, I have the energy to delve into only this one area."

Lian calls for the public to pay more attention to the endangered ancient architecture, as a lot of lesser-known architecture has fallen into disrepair or been incorrectly restored by locals.

While public enthusiasm for his work may fade, Lian aims to put on his backpack, embark on his journey once again and record the architecture in Shanxi.

chengyuezhu@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 07/13/2018 page18)