Oldsters are generally more nostalgic, and this is also the case for 73-year-old Qin Tingguang. Distinguishing himself from others, he uses a paintbrush to sketch out how he remembers Chongqing. Born and raised in Chongqing, Qin spent his childhood under the wall of the lower half of the city.

Qin's line-drawn Drawing.

In the 1950s, some ancient city walls and many battlements were preserved in surrounding Chuqi Gate, and there was also Shuncheng Street at the foot of the city walls. Life near the city walls was tough at that time but still created a lot of good memories for Qin, thus becoming his lifelong attachment. When he reached adulthood, Qin left the downtown area for Tongliang to work as a poster painter for a film company and an art editor for the Tongliang newspaper successively. He has devoted all his life to the Drawing. Therefore, after his retirement, Qin sketched the ancient Chongqing through line drawing and published two drawing books. One is Old Chongqing in Memory. The other is Seventeen Ancient City Gates in Chongqing.

Qin published two drawing books. One is Old Chongqing in Memory. The other is Seventeen Ancient City Gates in Chongqing.

Historically, Chongqing was at the center of the confluence of the Yangtze River and Jialing River, which is now known as the "Mother City of Chongqing." According to documentary records, Chongqing was built on the foundation of the State of Ba. It had undergone four large-scale repairs in the Warring States, Shu Han, the Southern Song Dynasty, and the early Ming Dynasty, thus forming the layout of 17 city gates. During the urban renewal of Chongqing in the 1930s and 1940s, all city gates were demolished, except for Tongyuan Gate and Dongshui Gate. Fortunately, Renhe Gate, Taiping Gate, and Nanji Gate have, in recent years, been excavated, while the remaining ones have disappeared.

To recreate the appearance of 17 ancient city gates of Chongqing, Qin consulted many historical materials and watched films and documentaries about old Chongqing to go deep into the cultural history of these gates. As the times change, only a small portion of the seventeen city gates remain, while most merely have their names in our minds. This also makes it difficult for Qin to create. Those ancient city gates, which have experienced many uncertainties, silently telling the history, but now, they are crowded with people and vehicles. Instead of brave soldiers, on the city gates are citizens who drink tea at ease. Even so, Qin believes that people should always remember the rich cultural history that those city gates have left to Chongqing.