Yee-Mei,Lau (Karen)
Project 5
Many of the famous artists are westerners, and one of the best well-known
artists in Hong Kong must be Alice Mak, (Chinese, 麥 家 碧). She is a cartoonist;
McDull and McMug is the most famous cartoon that she created. Alice graduated at
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in year 1988, and she is major in Design. She
was not interesting in Art before she get into the university. She took the Hong Kong
Certificate of Education Examination in her high school, and she only got an E in art.
But later, she was influence by her older brother. Her older brother was taking design
in university.
During her years in university, she had a chance to be a exchange student over
Europe, that is the changing point of her designer’s life. She visited a artist, whose
helps the magazine draw some picture, she loves the environment of the studio, she
knows she will become a artist who draws picture for magazine.
After the trip, she asks some of the professor in the university, how to become
a successful artist. And she was invited by some magazine to draw pictures. After she
graduated, the biggest newspaper company in Hong Kong, Ming Pao, hired her to
draw some cartoon in their children magazine. This is the first time McMug was
created.
The artist that influences Alice the most is Raymond Briggs, the author of
<<Snowman>>. She said, Raymond Briggs giving humanity to Father Christmas and
Snowman, the story give a reflection for us, and that is good for adults and children.
Mc is the last name for McDull and McMug. Mc has the same pronunciation
as Mak, which is the last name of Alice. She wants to show, she is the creator of them.
McMug is the first cartoon she created. The name Mug in Cantonese has a meaning as
stupid. She wants to create a little boy, who always did something stupid, and always
dreaming for his future.
MuDull is the second cartoon, which is more successful and better known.
Because his mother, Mrs. Mak. I am sure Mrs. Mak always does the housewife job.
And Alice uses lots of very local background and it can make Hong Kong people have
the same feeling with it.
When she became more famous, she created the animated films, such as, My
Life as McDull and McDull , Prince de la Bun. These two films have received
numerous awards. The newest one is McDull Kung Fu Kindergarten, which released
last summer.
The way that Alice draws is using watercolor. And most of the times, she used
computer as the main tool for her job. And she shared her own experience how to
become a successful cartoonist, “ you need to keep drawing, drawing and drawing,
and then looking back of your drawing. If you are the person who loves art, then you
will never stop drawing.”
The other interesting part of her artwork is, most of the time the background is
very local. They are not the most famous part of Hong Kong, but they are the picture
that we saw everyday. The story the most interesting to me, when Mrs.Mak and
McDull see the doctor, Alice put them in a old building, that is the place we saw the
clinic when we were young. This is the success key for McMug and Mudull story.
They are local and base on everythings around us.
For the coming years, Alice will create more film on McMug and McDull, and
she hopes the story can gives people a reflection on their life.