“On 9th December, 1998, the Department of Fine Arts hosted a grand banquet in celebration of its 20th anniversary…When teacher Chuang and his wife entered the room, everybody, including former and current students, teachers, all rose and burst into a wild applause. It was an emotional moment.” [1]

Our first Department Head, Professor Chuang Shen 莊申 (1932-2000), is an internationally reputed scholar in the field of Chinese art history, and to many of our early alumni, a sincere and respectable teacher. Students of recent years may not have the chance to meet “teacher Chuang” in person, but they may get a glimpse of his legacy through various accounts written by his students, among which is an article by Anita Wong and Harold Mok, both alumni and once teachers at our Department. [2] (click to read the article)

[1] Anita Wong and Harold Mok, “What is There in the Mountain? Plenty of Clouds are above the Hill: Art Historian Professor Chuang Shen” in Hong Kong Visual Arts Yearbook 2000 (Hong Kong: Department of Fine Arts, CUHK, 2002), 24 .

[2] We would like to acknowledge Hong Kong Visual Arts Yearbook《香港視覺藝術年鑑》 and Department of Fine Arts, The Chinese University of Hong Kong 香港中文大學藝術系 for granting us the permission to post this featured essay.

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