"I soon decided to shake off any upset, because it just brings more anger, instead persuading myself to take it as nature's gift," Zhu says.

And indeed it was－he examined the stain and found it almost formed the shape of a bird. He soon became keenly interested in it, and other bird droppings, which he copied into his sketchbooks over the next three years, before turning them into a book.

"I'm delighted to create something out of nothing, or the positive out of the unpleasant," says the world-class artist and author, who aims at creating his own titles and telling stories in the language of nature, to inspire, entertain and educate.

Zhu enjoys talking to, and drawing with, children to ignite their creativity in schools, and maybe due to a similar power of curiosity, younger readers can quickly understand Zhu's ideas. They're also encouraged by Zhu to discover and depict their own transformed birds.

He always wants to do something to influence more people to find valuable things in life.

Chinese art lessons are about being pleasant and realistic, he says, but things that are vulgar or simple can also be beautiful.

"Beauty is about being interesting and vigorous, no matter if it initially seems ugly or plain. The meaning lies in how the creator deals with the subject," he says.