The Oxherd Boy

Introduction

“You’ll never be a great gongbi artist.”

Having grown up through a supportive American school system in the 90s, I found this verdict, delivered so definitively by my painting teacher in Taiwan, surprising and harsh. Though he continued to advise me that I’d have greater opportunities if I developed my own style separate from tradition, I didn’t feel any better. It wasn’t clear to me how I would change the direction of my career as an artist.

I was thirty-five years old, living in my parents’ home again in a new city on the other side of the world. It was a place where I could navigate the matters of daily living but struggled to plumb the depths of cultural nuance. And it was here that my husband and I chose to raise our young son who was at an age where he demanded answers to some big questions on life and death, love and fear, fairness and forgiveness—basically, what it meant to be a human being. It was strange to be confronted with my own ignorance about such fundamental, universal topics; and it was in this crucible that I began The Oxherd Boy.

The three friends you’ll meet—the ox, the oxherd boy, and the rabbit—take shape around the Three Harmonious Teachings, which are the pillars of Chinese philosophical thought. We first encounter the boy, a character inspired by Taoism. He looks at the world without judging right from wrong, accepting both as a source of balance in the world. The ox, a strong and simple character who views the world through a Buddhist lens, joins the boy’s innocence with kindness. We all experience pain and suffering on this earth, and therefore, we are all capable of compassion. Lastly, the rabbit, representing Confucianism, comes into the fold. She is an active and industrious participant concerned with how we look after each other here on earth. Together, they help one another develop peaceful relationships with nature, their community of family and neighbors, and themselves.

As delightful as it’s been to create this collection with my son in mind, what I didn’t expect was how much the project would shape my own self-awareness and understanding. Working on The Oxherd Boy continues to inform and guide my own patterns as a parent, an emerging artist and author, and in general, a person engaged in the slow work of illuminating previously unexamined corners of her heart and mind.

As it would turn out, The Oxherd Boy became the book that I most needed to create for myself. But this world is for you, too. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.