"Small Hands, Big Love": Nurturing Goodness through Art

"Small Hands, Big Love": Nurturing Goodness through Art Interviewee: Qian Liru, Founder of the "Small Hands, Big Love" Children's Art Alliance Interview Date: November 2020 From being a private art teacher for children of elite families during her college years to independently planning and organizing charity art exhibitions for children during her entrepreneurial journey, and then bravely venturing into new territory in art education despite the challenges posed by the pandemic—behind this impressive life journey is not only the favor of destiny upon this young person dedicated to charity work, but also her resilience and vision.

I. Two Years of Extracurricular Internship Experience Accumulated Valuable Wealth Qian Liru, born into an academic family, possessed maturity and depth beyond her years.

During her junior year in college, she started taking on part-time jobs and internships off-campus.

Initially, she worked as a part-time art teacher at an educational institution, and parents fondly called her "Teacher Xiao Qian."

As the courses progressed, many parents grew to appreciate and admire Teacher Xiao Qian's educational philosophy and teaching style. Gradually, some parents invited her to provide one-onone private tutoring for their children, allowing their kids to receive personalized and professional guidance from Teacher Xiao Qian.

Accumulating experience step by step, during her junior and senior years in college, Qian Liru built a wealth of connections and resources through her teaching. In her senior year, she used the savings she had accumulated to invest in a private educational institution. While simultaneously serving as a shareholder, she remained actively involved in front-line art education, conducting classes for larger groups. After teaching children of different types multiple times, Teacher Xiao Qian gave herself two months to adjust the pace and methods of her classes, fostering interactive integration with kindergarten-level students.

In addition to her commitment to education, Qian Liru took a long-term view of her career. As one of the shareholders, she gained insights into school management through numerous shareholder meetings and learned about the institution's teaching models. From these experiences, she developed her own management system.

Despite being a recent graduate, Qian Liru had accumulated rich teaching and management experience. These valuable experiences provided her with the key to enter the world of children's art education.

After thorough preparation, Qian Liru once again ventured beyond her comfort zone. In 2017, this post-90s art teacher established her own children's art education institution, the "Art Together International Children's Art Education." Guided by the belief that "every child is a born artist," Qian Liru and her team were dedicated to inspiring and nurturing innovative thinking and artistic perception in children aged 3 to 12. They aimed to help children discover beauty, feel beauty, create beauty, and share beauty.

The blueprint for art education that Qian Liru meticulously crafted was gradually unfolding.

II. Engaging in Charity Work: Cultivating Art and Beautifying Souls In October of this year, the Shanghai Baolong Art Museum held a two-day "Small Hands, Big Love" children's charity art exhibition. Founder Qian Liru set an example for the children, showing them what love is and how to love.

Qian Liru's initial motivation for organizing charity art exhibitions was her involvement in the "Xian Guan Ai Foundation" during her junior year. Her innate kindness and love forged a deep connection between her and charitable causes.

As a volunteer for the "Xian Guan Ai Foundation," Qian Liru visited the leukemia children's ward at Ruijin Hospital and the Children's Medical Center every month to teach art to critically ill children.

Considering the limited physical strength of these children, thoughtful Teacher Xiao Qian didn't engage them in long-lasting painting or handicraft activities. Rather, she focused on helping these young warriors battling illness to relax and find some moments of joy.

"When children are in the hospital, everything around them is white—the sheets, the walls, their clothes, the doctors—all white. In the hospital, we just want to bring a little bit of laughter and companionship to their time there, aside from iPads and video games," Qian Liru recalled, tears welling up in her eyes.

Upon learning of Qian Liru's charitable activities, parents around her expressed a desire for their own children to participate. However, due to hospital regulations, neither children in treatment nor those outside the ward who wanted to spread more love to their peers could enter the wards, as their immunity was limited.

Inspired by the idea of parents hanging their children's artwork at home, Qian Liru and her parent friends came up with a brilliant solution—organize a charity art exhibition for children. They would lovingly sell the young artists' creations, with all proceeds donated to charity.

In 2016, at the "Tong Le Fang" venue provided by the "Xian Guan Ai Foundation," Qian Liru organized the first "Small Hands, Big Love, Teacher Qian's Little Artists" charity art exhibition.

From guiding children to complete their artworks to the post-production and framing of artworks, and even the entire planning of the exhibition, Qian Liru single-handedly managed all aspects of the event. Over thirty students, all currently enrolled, signed up to participate in this charity art exhibition.

To raise more funds, Qian Liru also designed and customized various merchandise derived from the children's artworks for the charity exhibition—phone cases, mugs, puzzles, calendars, mouse pads, carpets, eco-friendly bags, and more. All proceeds from the sales were donated to the "Xian Guan Ai Foundation" to help more children in need.

Charity work never stops, and love is evergreen. In the years that followed, Qian Liru remained steadfast in her initial mission.

In May 2018, the children's charity art exhibition was held at the Shanghai Center Building, with all proceeds donated to the Yutian Orphan School.

In 2019, Qian Liru expanded the registration scope of the children's charity art exhibition to include the entire Shanghai area, with over 1,000 children actively participating.

In October of this year, the charity art exhibition for children was held as scheduled. This time, Qian Liru further expanded the registration scope, holding a nationwide recruitment campaign for young charity artists. Children from all over the country had the opportunity to contribute their love through their own hands.

All the funds raised over these two years have been donated to the special fund of the Song Qingling Foundation's children's reading program. This money is used to build children's reading rooms in impoverished areas, providing ample reading space for children and optimizing their reading experiences.

Qian Liru firmly believes that aesthetic education should not only cultivate children's "intelligence" and "beauty" but also teach them "virtue" and "kindness." Children create touching artworks with their own hands, and the proceeds from the sale of these artworks bring new hope to critically ill children and orphaned students. This unique, light-hearted yet profound love not only nourishes the hearts of the young artists but also strengthens their kindness and empathy.

The deeper meaning of passing down aesthetic art from generation to generation is vividly demonstrated here.

Qian Liru and her team, along with the children participating in charity art exhibitions, continue

to create heartwarming stories, adding a touch of warmth to this year's winter.

III. Entrepreneurship: Overcoming Challenges and Turning Crisis into Opportunity In the early stages of her entrepreneurial journey, Qian Liru established her first campus in an office building. This meant that Qian Liru and her team had to promote their brand through various channels to attract clients. Often, the simplest promotion methods are the most effective. After trying hiring street promoters to distribute flyers near kindergartens, Qian Liru found that the results were less than ideal. Unfazed by others' cold stares and disdain, she personally led her team to carry out grassroots promotion.

No effort is in vain. Five thousand flyers were effectively distributed within a month, and Qian Liru's team welcomed their first batch of new students. As word of mouth spread and the brand gained exposure, more and more parents entrusted their children to Qian Liru's institution, and her children's art education business thrived.

However, the path of entrepreneurship is not always smooth, and Qian Liru finds it incredible when she looks back on her experiences in the early stages of her career.

Earlier this year, faced with the sudden outbreak of the pandemic, Qian Liru and her team encountered a period of stagnation in their development. Due to health and safety concerns, offline educational institutions had to suspend their teaching activities.

To continue providing long-term and stable art training for young students and to consistently develop their children's charity work, Qian Liru founded the "Small Hands, Big Love Children's Art Alliance." They continued to uphold their initial mission by organizing nationwide charity art exhibitions and competitions online.

"Besides earning money and material things, people also need to realize other forms of value while living," Qian Liru asserted. In the future, she and her team will continue to adhere to their original intentions. Through the "Small Hands, Big Love Children's Art Alliance," they will regularly organize "Small Hands, Big Love Children's Charity Art Exhibitions" every year. These exhibitions will convey the sincere wishes of Qian Liru and the children to leukemia patients and orphaned schoolchildren, contributing their full strength to the development of charitable causes.

In this world of art filled with virtue and warmth, the stories of Qian Liru and the children continue to unfold endlessly.