Wood carving, gradually disappearing folk art

When Lao Hu turned to walk upstairs, she took a carved vase in her hand. When I walked close to see it, I saw that the half-high bottle was full of complicated patterns. The graceful branches coiled around them, and the two squirrels chased and flocked among the branches, and they lived their lives vividly. There was a little dust on the brown-yellow paint. It can be seen that this vase has been for some years. For Lao Hu, this is only a piece of work that belongs to the upper middle level in his life and is randomly placed in the corner of the room. .

Lao Hu Mingshi Kang, who has been engaged in wood carving for 52 years, talks about the experience of this life. He is always anxious about it. “It's really embarrassing to be a human being. This craft is afraid that it cannot be passed on.”

Abandoning leisure work, he joined the wood carving industry in 1961. At that time, only 21-year-old Lao Hu entered the broadcasting station. If he were to change to the present, it would be a relaxed and decent job. At that time, the salary of more than 20 yuan a month was not low, because most of the staff in the office units had similar income, but compared with many craftsmen, they were slightly shabby.

After some thoughtful consideration, one year later, Lao Hu resigned from his job as an “iron rice bowl”, went home to follow his father, and inherited his family business. This also became the fourth-generation descendant of wooden sculptures in the family.

Under assiduous study, Lao Hu officially took the division. Shortly after the completion of the division, Lao Hu’s economic income level immediately went “up and down”, and sometimes earning 5 yuan a day was also “hand to hand”. This increasingly gave Lao Hu a great deal of confidence. The selection of this craft was indeed a wise move at that time.

As a result, Lao Hu sank into the craft. Gradually, Lao Hu's skills are "blue and blue rather than blue." “My father had a good bill, and it was very fast, but my ability to repair light and shovel light was better than him, so the carved things were much more refined.” Lao Hu explained that repairing light is the use of carved The fine carving and the thin-knife thick-film method repair the knife marks and gouges in the thin blank to make the surface of the wood carving work perfect. The requirements of this procedure are relatively high. The marks should be clear and detailed, either round or straight, and strive to show the details of each part and its texture.

However, the standard of living in the 1960s was generally not high, and there were few markets for wood carving handicrafts. Therefore, Lao Hu's family basically received jobs such as carved beds, tables and doors, and the technical content was not high.

In 1966, Lao Hu left his father alone to go to a wood carving factory in Huangyan for development. “That wood carving factory mainly produces flowers and birds screens, and the products are basically sold to Europe, so the requirements for the craftsmanship are very particular.” The old lady said that the work experience was very helpful to him. Through the exercise, the craftsmanship became more exquisite.

The rise of mechanical woodcarvings and the decline of traditional craftsmanship Before and after 1980, Lao Hu, who had been away from home for a long time, returned to Zeguo and took over his father's shop six years after working at the agricultural machinery factory. At that time, it was an era of reform and opening up. The conditions of every family had improved. Naturally, there was a higher demand for the decoration of furniture and other daily necessities. Therefore, Lao Hu was very skillful in furniture carving.

In her free time, Lao Hu began to pursue more demanding wood carving crafts, carving portraits, vases and other crafts. “No one in this area has taught experiences and can only explore for themselves.” Lao Hu borrowed from the Dongyang woodcarving that had been passed down for a long time, and then used his own observation of real objects to create paintings based on the kind of gourd.

“Whether it is wood carving or other craftsmanship, there is no end to it when it comes to research. It is only in terms of tactics that we must strive for excellence.” Old Hu said that wood carvings express their ideas on wood. With his love, he gradually carved out vases, four-meter-tall Buddha statues, and even "days of women scattered flowers."

However, manpower is always available. While Hu Jintao tirelessly pursued higher levels of craftsmanship, science and technology are also advancing with each passing day. Computer engraving and mechanical engraving have rapidly emerged and gradually replaced manual carving. "As long as the mechanically engraved items are input on the computer, the machine will automatically sculpt, and each one is very detailed. This is unmatched by hand." Lao Hu smiled, like the vase at hand, even if the process was a bit rough It will take at least a week to finish. If it is a mechanical carving, it may be only a matter of hours, and the efficiency is increased by several dozen times.

Under this trend, gradually, Lao Hu rarely receives any business such as furniture decoration and sculpture, and craftsmanship is no one cares. In order to make a living, Lao Hu began to engrave Buddhist temples and other objects. At one time, he also wanted to pass on this craft, but he brought with him a few apprentices. None of them succeeded, and most of them did not even insist on this line of entry.