Thé Tjong-Khing

Thé Tjong-Khing[lower-alpha 1] (Chinese: 鄭宗瓊; pinyin: Zhèng Zōngqióng; born August 4, 1933) is a children's book illustrator based in the Netherlands.

Thé Tjong-Khing (1978)

He was born in Purworedjo, Java to a large Chinese Indonesian family. As a child he was interested in the Tarzan comic strips of Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tjong-Khing attended the Seni Rupa (arts) institute in Bandung. He came to the Netherlands in 1956 and started as a draftsman at the Toonder Studio's, initially as a volunteer and later as an employee.

In addition to his work on Olivier B. Bommelstrip's, he also contributed to the magazine Tina and created Arman & Ilva. In 1970 he was asked to provide illustration for Miep Diekmann's children's book. He became a freelance illustrator providing illustration to many children's book authors such as van Guus Kuijer, Els Pelgrom, Sylvia Vanden Heede en Dolf Verroen.

Tjong-Khing won the Gouden Penseel (Golden Brush) award three times, and in 2005 won the Woutertje Pieterse Prijs for his book Waar is de taart? (Where is the cake?), a picturebook without text. For this he also won the Zilveren Penseel and was nominated for the Deutsche Jugendliteraturpreis in 2007. In 2010 he won the Max Velthuijs-prijs (Max Velthuijs Prize).[1]

Tjong-Khing is also a film expert and has won many quizzes and contests over the years.

Tjong-Khing is married to Mino Wortel-The and father of two sons: Markus and Erik. His grandchildren are called Tobias, Jonathan, Nicci and Emma.