Older Posts

Please visit the Cheng Biography Blog for older posts.

Ed Young, T’ai Chi Teacher and Cheng Assistant, Passes Away

ED YOUNG, CHILDREN’S BOOK ARTIST PASSES AWAY AT 91

New York, New York 10/1/23: Acclaimed children’s book artist Ed Young passed away September 29, 2023 in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York at the age of 91. Recipient of the Caldecott Medal and many other honors, Young illustrated over 100 books, many of which he wrote himself.

Born in 1931 in Tianjin, China, Ed Young grew up with four siblings in Shanghai, where their U.S. educated father was dean of engineering at St. John’s University. As a youth, Young was not a particularly attentive student, being more interested in daydreaming and making up stories.

Young arrived in the United States in 1951, and studied architecture and then art, graduating from the ArtCenter School of Design in Los Angeles. He moved to New York City and worked in advertising while continuing his art studies at Pratt Institute. He nurtured his artistic abilities by sketching at the zoo and elsewhere in the city. In 1962, at the age of 31, through the encouragement of Ursula Nordstrom at Harper & Row, he made his first children’s book, The Mean Mouse and Other Stories. He received a Caldecott Honor for his 1968 book with author Jane Yolen, The Emperor and the Kite. His own Lon Po Po, a Chinese version of the Little Red Riding Hood story, won the Caldecott Medal in 1991, and Seven Blind Mice received the Caldecott honor in 1993. Many other accolades followed, including two nominations for the Hans Christian Andersen Award, and Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Eric Carle Museum and the Society of Illustrators.

A chance meeting with an old friend in 1964 led Young to take up t’ai chi ch’uan, the Chinese martial art and health discipline, with Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing, who had just arrived in New York City from Taiwan. Cheng, a well-known artist and traditional doctor, was one of the first t’ai chi ch’uan masters to actively teach non-Chinese. Through Cheng, for whom he served as a translator, Ed Young began what would become a lifelong exploration not just of t’ai chi ch’uan, but of the essence of Chinese culture: its ideas, language, and history. This would greatly influence his storytelling, artwork, teaching, and daily life. Young himself taught t’ai chi ch’uan for over four decades in Hastings-on-Hudson, as well as at Yale, Naropa Institute, and workshops around the country.

Young always sought book projects that would stimulate him to grow as an artist and person. He retold classic stories in Lon Po Po, Seven Blind Mice, and Pinocchio, experimented with accordian-style format in Bird and Diz, introduced Chinese values and language in Beyond the Great Mountain and Voices of the Heart, shared of his personal life in My Mei Mei, Should You Be a River, and The House that Baba Built, in addition to many books about animals, environment, and the future of the planet.

Working in a wide variety of mediums including pencils, pastels, paints, papercutting, collage, and found objects, Young explored each to its fullest, always experimenting, resulting in stunning, colorful, multilayered pieces that often also appeared in art exhibitions. He was a fast worker, able to complete several books in a year; and delighted in hiding symbols and puzzles in the artwork. In addition to working with well-known writers such as Jane Yolen, he often collaborated with friends. He also donated his artwork to numerous causes.

Very active in the Hastings-on-Hudson community, Ed Young supported the historical society, library, bookstore, and was deeply involved with efforts to clean up and renovate the long-polluted riverfront.

Due to his charming demeanor, a blend of serious and playful, Ed Young was a widely sought-after presenter for education and library events. Author Jane Yolen described him as “a brilliant, funny, sometimes cantankerous man who made me laugh and think at the same time.” Children’s book expert Leonard Marcus wrote, “Ed Young was an artist of absolute integrity. He approached book making with a beginner’s mind and a practiced hand. He took the measure of all things and cared nothing about trends. He moved like a cat. Laughter lit up his conversation. Knowing Ed was a joy.”

Ed Young is predeceased by his wife, book designer Filomena Tuosto, and his parents and siblings. He is survived by two daughters, many relatives, friends, and students.

Contact: McIntosh & Otis www.mcintoshandotis.com
Ed Young’s Chinese name: Yang Zhicheng / Yang Chih-ch’eng 楊志成
Ed Young official website: www.edyoungart.com

The Lotus—Open Museum Paintings

The beautfiul lotus, so graceful and symbolic, has long been prized by artists and poets. Zheng Manqing (Cheng Man-ch’ing) took “Father of the Lotus” as one of his artistic nicknames, as he was born the day before the summertime “Lotus Day.” He had a tradition of painting a lotus every year on his birthday.

The “Open Museum,” an online gathering of materials from numerous Taiwan museums, has a wonderful online exhibit “Shadow of Lotus” 蓮影 including works by Zheng Manqing and his colleagues Zhang Daqian (Chang Ta-ch’ien) and others. Visit the exhibit at this link.

Cheng Man-ch’ing Archive Established

2022.006.019 – Cheng Man-Ching with a sword. Courtesy of Ken Van Sickle, Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) Cheng Man-Ching Collection.

The Museum of Chinese in America, located in New York City’s Chinatown, has established an archive of Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing material. Donations have come from his students and associates. Some material can be viewed online.

New Book: In the Presence of Cheng Man-Ch’ing

In the Presence of Cheng Man-Ch’ing: My Life and Lessons with the Master of Five Excellences
by William C. Phillips
Hardcover, 236 pages
Floating World Press, 2020, $24.95
ISBN: 978-0648283126

Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing (Zheng Manqing, 1902–1975) was a noted painter, writer, herbal doctor, and taijiquan teacher. His last decade was spent in New York City. This brought him into contact with numerous young American martial artists, such as Bill Phillips, the author of this delightful memoir. Phillips, now the head of Patience T’ai Chi, describes the setting of the mid-to-late 1960s, during which numbers of skilled karate, judo, aikido, and taekwondo practitioners, after hearing about Cheng, came to study with him. Even skeptics left impressed.

In this book, we sit at Philips’ side listening to Cheng’s spontaneous insights about taiji. We hear the formal lectures on Laozi, Confucianism, health, morals, and art. We witness the public and the private encounters, the snapshots of Chinatown of fifty years ago.

While much of the book is about Cheng Man-ch’ing and the ideas he imparted, it is told through Phillips’ own life course: growing as a martial artist, seeking out a master teacher, maturing and attaining insight with age, and, following Cheng’s model of sharing knowledge, becoming a teacher.

Phillips’ book joins the ranks of memoirs written by direct students of Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing; in particular Wolfe Lowenthal and Robert W. Smith. All of these paint a picture of a skillful practitioner, revered by many, yet very human.

Bill Phillips does not spare himself in this look back. One year, he willingly took on the task of driving Cheng and his assistants to class, even though it was far out of his way. On one trip to the studio, Cheng and assistant conversed in Chinese, and Phillips heard his name and the word “kung fu” (gongfu) mentioned.

Naturally, I got excited. Was he preparing to tell me a secret of  kungfu? Was that to be my reward for driving him? Did I know something about kung fu that he was praising? So I quickly and impolitely interrupted and asked.
I was told that [Professor Cheng] had said that I should use more discipline in my driving. What about the words kung fu that I had heard, I eagerly wondered out loud. The answer was: it means discipline, as when American martial artists say, “He studies the art,” and we know they are referring to a martial art, when Chinese refer to “discipline,” they are referring sometimes to a specific discipline—martial art.
However, in this case Professor was not. He was referring to the lack of self-discipline in my driving. I was hitting far too many potholes as I drove. My chest feell, my ego deflated….
It was the first time, but not the last time that I embarrassed myself in front of the Professor.

Those who studied with Cheng often point out that Cheng did not keep secrets. Phillips explains,

I think that many of those people [who doubted Cheng] were too stiff and strong to get a lot of what he was trying to explain. Of course, those who could not seem to get it with their first effort, rahter than redouble their efforst, chose to think there must be a secret he was not sharing.

Taiji people from all styles will enjoy this view of one of the leading taiji figures of the late twentieth century. Those of Cheng’s direct lineage will gain more insight into his teachings and the great impact he had on a wide variety of students.

In Memory: Benjamin Lo

One of the leading figures of late twentieth-century taiji, Benjamin Pang-jeng Lo, has passed away. Born in 1927 in Mainland China, Ben, as he was called by his students, was one of Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing’s earliest students in Taiwan after both of their families had resettled there at the end of China’s civil war in the late 1940s.

In his early twenties, Lo was not well; his father sent him to see Cheng Man-ch’ing, who was a well-known artist and traditional doctor, as well as a t’ai chi master. Lo was not able to consume the prescribed herbs, so Cheng recommended he study t’ai chi to build up his body strength. Lo began training with Cheng, and never stopped. He studied literature in college, and then got a masters in public administration. After working in the government, all the while continuing his t’ai chi studies, he moved to San Francisco, and with Cheng’s encouragement, began his teaching career.

Over the years, Ben Lo taught thousands of students, both in his San Francisco studio and in regular camps and workshops in many cities around the United States, Europe, and elsewhere. He was a regular visitor to the Shih Chung T’ai Chi Association when visiting Taiwan. Lo, along with Robert Smith, was a staunch defender of Cheng’s teachings and reputation.

Lo produced several important books. He worked on a translation of the Classics with Susan Foe, Robert Amacker, and Martin Inn, titled The Essence of T’ai Chi Ch’uan, which was one of the earliest t’ai chi books in English (it has since been reissued by the Inner Research Institute). With Robert W. Smith, he translated Chen Weiming’s T’ai Chi Ch’uan Ta Wen: Questions and Answers on T’ai Chi Ch’uan. With Martin Inn, Lo translated Cheng Man-ch’ing’s seminal Cheng-tzu’s Thirteen Treatises on T’ai Chi Ch’uan. 
 Lo was the subject of a number of articles, including a lengthy interview in the Journal of Asian Martial Arts. He also gave a series of lectures and made videos, produced by the Inner Research Institute.

Lo’s workshops were grueling, challenging, enlightening, and informative. They were usually quite large,  with scores of students in attendance. They struggled to hold postures while he walked around making correcctions on everyone. Lo’s ability to root was legendary; he was able to playfully shrug off the most aggressive and large push hands challengers, always with a smile on his face. His teaching style was very direct and often very critical-sounding, but always with humor. “You must go lower! Remember my name, Ben(d) Lo!” He regularly admonished me and others, saying, “Why do you Americans have to write books about t’ai chi? You should just practice more!” Another pet peeve he had was how impatient people were about learning and presumptuousness about becoming teachers: “They think they can teach t’ai chi after just studying one month. They think they can be born after just one month!”

Ben Lo’s work lives on in his many students and others whom he inspired. 

—Barbara Davis

The Professor: T’ai Chi’s Journey to the West

“The Professor:  T’ai Chi’s Journey to the West” chronicles Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing’s decade in the United States. Told in the words of Cheng’s direct students and family, this feature documentary film casts a spell that brings the 1960s to life again….”The Professor” is highly recommended for anyone interested in t’ai chi, Asian martial arts and spiritual disciplines, Chinese-American history, later twentieth-century America, and in understanding the nuances of global cultural exchange on a very personal level. Beyond this, “The Professor” is an intimate look at how big an impact one person can have on so many lives.”
Read the complete review of this recently released movie at the Cheng Biography blog.

New Taiji Anthologies on Chen Style, Zheng Manqing, Taiji for Health

The Journal of Asian Martial Arts has created several taiji-related anthologies bundling its articles on a number of topics of interest, all available as ebooks at Via Media. These articles represent the accumulation of two decades of publication by leading researchers and practitioners in the field.

Cheng Man-ch’ing and Tai Chi: Echoes in the Hall of Happiness, by Barbara Davis, Donald Davis, Michael DeMarco, T. G. LaFredo, Lawrence L. Mann, Russ Mason, Robert W. Smith, and Nigel Sutton.

T’ai Chi & Qigong for Your Health: Historical and Scientific Foundations by Michael DeMarco, M.A., Arieh Lev Breslow, M.A., S. Kachur, B.M.R. (P.T), R.N. Carleton, M.A. & G. , Kenneth S. Cohen, M.A., M.S.Th., C.J. Rhoads, D.Ed., M.Ed., Duane Crider, Ph.D.

Chen T’ai Chi: Traditional Instructions from the Chen Village, Vol. 2, by Adam Wallace, Michael A. DeMarco, M.A. & A. Edwin Matthews, Yaron Seidman, L.Ac., Michael Rosario Graycar and Rachel Tomlinson, M.Ed, Bosco Seung-Chul Baek, B.S.

Chen T’ai Chi: Traditional Instructions from the Chen Village, Vol. 1, by Dietmar Stubenbaum, Wong Jiaxiang; Michael DeMarco, M.A., Trans., Miriam O’Conner, M.A., Stephan Berwick, M.A., Asr Cordes, David Gaffney, B.A.

Media Reviews: New Book on Cheng Man-ch’ing’s Taijiquan

Wisdom of the Masters: Insights into Cheng Man Ching’s Art
Nigel Sutton
Tambuli Media, 2014
176 pages
ISBN-10: 0692250913

Cheng Man-ch’ing and his teachings are the subject of this new book from Nigel Sutton. The book is based on Sutton’s encounters with the Malaysian branch of Cheng Man-ch’ing’s tradition: Lau Kim Hong, Lee Bei Lei, Zhou Mu Tu, Ho Ah San, Tan Ching Ning, Dr. Fong Fung Tong, Wu Chiang Hsing and Koh Ah Tee. The focus is on practice of taijiquan as a martial art and neigong. The interviewees are of a calibre and age that allows for some deep reflections, insights on practice and teaching, melding taiji with spiritual practices, taiji as a “Dao,” role of lineage, and many other topics, including the relationship of gongfu to years of practice, and the relationship to aging. 
 Reminiscent of Robert Smith’s Masters and Methods, the book is conversational in tone, and explores the meaning of, and extreme dedication to taijiquan for these men’s lives, with many insights into practice, regardless of the reader’s lineage.