A painting depicting fish, in 1976 back in China, highlight Chang Shuhong's transformation in artistic style. FANG AIQING/CHINA DAILY

He once wrote, the creators of this mural, featuring Prince Sattva sacrificing himself to feed a hungry tigress, so cleverly and skillfully combined different scenes of different times in the space of a single picture — his trip to the jungles, his offering of his own blood and flesh to the tigress, as well as his two brothers' discovery of his remains, their grief, and how they bury their sibling and build a stupa for him.

A solemn and heavy atmosphere is strengthened with the lines and colors, the contours and content, as well as the deep brown hue, he added.

Chang Shuhong wrote in 1948 that conservation of the caves required detailed, accurate and systematic facsimile of the murals with a faithful attitude, which is a matter of patience and sacrifice of one's own style and personality. His devotion to protecting the Mogao Caves largely cut down the time and effort paid to his own painting.