A middle-school teacher in China has inked hundreds of sketches that are beyond be-leaf . Politics teacher Wang Lian , 35 , has created 1000 stunning ink drawings covering subjects as varied as cartoon characters and landscapes to animals , birds according to the People 's Daily Online . The intricate scribbles on leaves feature Wang 's favourite sites across the city of Nanjing , which include the Presidential Palace , Yangtze River Bridge , the ancient Jiming Temple and the Qinhuai River . Natural canvas : Artist and teacher Wang Lian has done hundreds of drawings , like this temple , on leaves she collects in the park and on the streets . Delicate : She uses an ink pen to gently draw the local scenes and buildings on the dried out leaves . 'Although teaching politics is my job , drawing is my passion and hobby , ' said Wang . ' I first tried drawing on leaves about 10 years ago and fell in love with it as an art form immediately . 'It 's like drawing on very old parchment paper , you have to be really careful that you do n't damage the leaf because it is very fragile and this helps focus your attention and abilities . ' Wang started giving the drawings away on Christmas Eve in 2012 when her junior high school son came home saying he wanted to prepare some gifts for his classmates . Being an avid painter , Wang decided to give her son 's friends unique presents of gingko leaf paintings . Wang loves gingko leaves and will often pick them up along Gingko Avenue , near to her school , in Nanjing in east China 's Jiangsu province . Every autumn she collects about 2,000 leaves from the ground to ensure she has enough to cover spoils too . Intricate : Teacher Wang has drawn hundreds of local scenes on leaves she has collected from the park . Hobby : The artist collects leaves every autumn and dries them out so she can sketch these impressive building scenes . 'The colour and shape of gingko leaves are particularly beautiful , ' she said . ' I need to collect around 2000 leaves because this will include losses ' . She takes them home where she then presses them between the pages of books . 'Luckily , I have quite a lot of books and I try to use old ones or ones that I 've already read so I do n't end up with nothing to read . ' Once they are dried , she carefully takes each one and using an ink fountain pen creates her masterpieces . She said : 'Some people are into capturing beauty through photography , but for me , a digitalised image just is n't the same . New leaf : Politics teacher Wang Lian has drawn hundreds of doodles on leaves for the last 10 years . 'By drawing what I see I become far more a part of the process and part of the final piece . 'One day I hope to be able to put my collection on display , but for now it 's really just for my own pleasure . ' Wang 's leaf paintings are turned into bookmarks , postcards and sometimes even given as gifts to her her students so she can share the beauty of leaf paintings . But locals who have had the luck of being able to see Wang 's art have been gobsmacked . Local art collector On Hao , 58 , said : 'These are truly remarkable and beautiful creations . 'She has so much talent she is wasted in teaching . '
Works include pictures of Presidential Palace and Yangtze River Bridge . Has inked 1,000 pieces of art on leaves in 35 . Gives work away to students in form of bookmarks and postcards .