Shuijingtai at the Jinci Temple is an architectural landmark in Shanxi province. [Photo by Bai Shuhao/China Daily]
The moment German illustrator and new media artist Anja Nolte stepped into the Jinci Temple in Taiyuan, Shanxi province, she immediately recognized the centuries-old Shuijingtai, or Water Mirror Stage.
It is, she recalls, the very stage that inspired one of the most memorable scenes in the 1960s Chinese animated classic Havoc in Heaven, in which the Monkey King, or Sun Wukong, showcases his legendary 72 transformations.
“I worked as an animator in Germany for a period of time, and I watched a number of Chinese animated films then,” Nolte says.
“So I knew this place.”
The Water Mirror Stage has become one of Shanxi’s most iconic architectural landmarks. Built more than 400 years ago, it has appeared repeatedly in Chinese popular culture, from the beloved 1986 television adaptation of Journey to the West to the video game Black Myth: Wukong and the recent animated feature Nobody.