Chang Shuhong

By 1945 Chen Zhixiu felt that their rural lifestyle was unbearable, separating from Chang and leaving Dunhuang. Their daughter Chang Shana remained with her father, growing up among the Mogao Caves. She would eventually follow his path to become a renowned artist and Dunhuang scholar.

In 1936, after returning to China, Chang began teaching at the National Art Institute in Beijing. In 1943, he moved his family to remote Dunhuang to pursue his dream of exploring Mogao Caves. He began over 40 years of rural life, tending to the Mogao Caves and creating his own artwork while at Dunhuang.

In 1928, Chang moved to Paris to attend the prestigious École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts (ENSBA, the National School of Fine Arts). Chen Zhixiu was also admitted to the ENSBA, studying sculpture.

Pursuing further education in the arts, Chang left China for Lyon, France, in June 1927. He initially enrolled in l'institut Franco-chinois de Lyon, where he met his wife, fellow art student Chen Zhixiu. Their daughter, Chang Shana, was born in Lyon in 1931.

Chang graduated from the Industrial School of Zhejiang (now Zhejiang University) in 1923. Two years later, in 1925, he became an instructor in the fine arts at his alma mater.

Chang Shuhong (Chinese: 常书鸿; 6 April 1904 – 23 June 1994) was a Chinese painter known as the "guardian of Dunhuang" for his crucial role in documenting, preserving, and publicizing the ancient artworks at the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, China.