Comparing someone to a dragon in Chinese is a common way of showing appreciation or admiration for a person’s skill, success and greatness. There aren’t a lot of people more deserving of the dragon tag than the legendary Bruce Lee.
Growing up with my relatives in Hong Kong, Lee was our favorite dragon. He had all the characteristics kids back then would want. Lee was half Chinese, well-built, good-looking, intelligent, charismatic, athletic, highly-successful in his profession as an actor, and most importantly, darn good at martial arts. Not coincidentally, he starred in two dragon-titled films that revolutionized the martial arts film genre: Way of the Dragon (1972) and the worldwide box office hit Enter the Dragon (1973).
More than 10 years after Bruce Lee’s unexpected death halted his phenomenal career, people were still crazy about him. Even I used to have a couple of Bruce Lee wannabes in my family. My brothers watched tapes of his movies (that were rated R due to violence) every week and tried to copy his haircut, his Jeet Kune Do moves (I cried whenever they practiced it on me) and even his mannerisms (nose scratching and Wattah! Wattah!-ing).
I once tried to fight back and hit one of my brothers with a vicious one-inch punch—a move popularized by Lee. My brother just laughed and said it felt like an inch strong. It was also because of my brothers’ influence, however, that I learned to appreciate Lee’s brilliance, passion and later on, his philosophy. I still remain a huge fan.
Let’s welcome the Year of the Dragon 2012 with 35 awesome examples of Bruce Lee artwork created by loyal fans as a tribute to”The Dragon”. This collection should be a great source of inspiration if you’re planning on printing posters for your room.
A Tribute to the Dragon: Awesome Examples of Bruce Lee Artwork
Bruce Lee The Way of the Dragon
Conclusion
Bruce Lee was a true martial arts icon. He starred in, co-wrote, choreographed and directed films that, despite lacking special-effects, are still rated up there on the list of top martial arts films of all time. No disrespect to Jackie Chan and Jet Li, but there will never be another Bruce Lee.
Which of these was your favorite? Have you come across any awesome Bruce Lee art that we have missed from this list? Please share your links and comments with us in the section below.