While many artists graduate from art schools, there are those who are self-taught, some even in harsh environments, like Kong Longzhen, a painter. 

"I wasn't always a painter. I've never been to college, and I needed to make a living. So, for 10 years I've been a truck driver. Even though I've always had a creative urge to paint, nobody thought this could be a serious profession for me,” said Kong. 

For a decade, he suppressed his love for painting and accepted reality. But in 2005, something happened that changed his life. "I was driving from Zhengzhou to Xiamen. More than 30 hours of driving. As I was going down a hill, my brake stopped working. I was overwhelmed with desperation. Because I've seen accidents like this on the road. One wrong move and I'd be dead in a flash,” said Kong. 

However, he managed to steer the truck for five kilometers until it stopped at a safe zone. It was a moment of euphoria as well as epiphany. "Life is fragile and short, and I don't want to die a truck driver. I decided to pursue my passion, which is painting”, said Kong. 

For a man with no formal art training, it was a risky decision, but it was something he had to do. He used every spare minute he could find on the road to train himself, by drawing on envelopes. "In this tiny space [of my truck] my ideas and thoughts soared. I drew about my life, my childhood, my hometown," said Kong. 

One day in 2013 he decided that he was ready. He brought some of this works to exhibit at a beach, risking confiscation from the city police. He hoped people would discover his talent and, eventually, they did. "Luckily many people liked them. I got some attention from the media, and one thing led to another, my works were being exhibited in a gallery in Denmark. It was a turning point in my career," said Kong. 

His works are now internationally acclaimed. "We invited him to Denmark for the Corner show because he is very direct and very open minded in his art. That kind of honesty, I think that has room all over the world”, said Lars Ravn, former chairman of the Corner Art Association.

Drawing inspirations from historical masters like Edvard Munch, his works express strong emotional conflicts, which is a recurring sentiment in his paintings. His early experiences as a truck driver, the hardship, the solitude, have been a constant source of inspiration for his works. "I think no painter can depict the life of truck drivers as good as I do. Others can draw its form, I can draw its soul”, said Kong.

All great works come from everyday life. Therefore, he said he is planning to drive again in order to get more inspiration. Kong said he is striving to eventually have a place in China's art history, even if he doesn't know how long it would take to get there. What's important is that he hits the ground running.