MasterOfCrafts | Beijing Eight Imperial Handicrafts: Studios of Masters (Part One)

Beijing Eight Imperial Handicrafts, namely Jingtailan (Cloisonne), Carved Lacquer, Jade Carving, Palace Carpet, Gold Lacquer Inlaid, Filigree Inlaid Metal Art, Ivory Carving, and Beijing Embroidery, once reached the art peak of handicraft in ancient China when they were used only by the Royal family. 

Thanks to the efforts of generations of masters, those handicrafts have been preserved well and given a new life. 

Let's walk into the studios of those masters to see how they work on their art.

Introduced from the Arabian countries during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) and becoming popular during the "Jingtai" years of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), "Jingtailan" represents a special localized cloisonne wrought of copper and porcelain. 

With patterns structured with copper wires and painted with enamel glaze all on a copper body, dozens of procedures including burning, grinding and gilding are applied to make a Jingtailan piece. Within 600 years, the craft is integrated into the traditional Chinese art.

Beijing Enamel Factory, first set up in 1956, is the only China Time-honored Brand in Jingtailan making now also serves as a production and protection base of the craft.

Over the past 60 plus years, the factory cradled a team of professional Jingtailan craftsmen, and Zhong Liansheng, a Chinese Master of Arts and Crafts, is one of the best. Being the general manager of the Beijing Enamel Factory, he is a national-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor for Jingtailan.

Zhong started his career in 1978 when he began to learn the art in a school. Nowadays, one of the masterpieces that he is most proud of is the enamel watch invented by his team. The piece, featuring an exquisite pattern lined with fine pure gold or silver wires of a diameter of 0.045 millimeters and filled with glaze on the dial, is completed with the help of a 40x microscope.

Zhong insists that the intangible cultural heritage can be passed to generations only by integrating it into people's daily life. With their efforts, Jingtailan art is accepted in common people's life and recently even is applied in architecture decorations.

Short before his retirement, Zhong's daily work includes patrolling on the production line and teaching apprentices, among whom some are honored titles such as city-level masters of arts and crafts.

Carved lacquer, dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907), greeted its peak time in Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Beijing and Yangzhou have become the two centers for the craft of carved lacquer, which was listed as a national-level intangible cultural heritage in 2006.

Carved lacquer differs in its colors, namely red, black or multiple colors. Its making procedures include designing, body shaping, lacquer making, coating, drawing, carving and grinding. The craftsman needs to smoothly use various kinds of knives to carve patterns on the ware, and even a little miss can destroy the whole artwork. The craft can only be grasped through three to five years of practice. Therefore, it is also called "the art of time."

Born in 1976, Zhu Jiang, an inheritor of the craft of carved lacquer, learned the art from his father Zhu Qingyuan since childhood. He also took Yin Xiuyun, a Chinese master of arts and crafts and a national-level inheritor of carved lacquer making, as his teacher. For Zhu, the modern craft of carved lacquer needs to integrate the essence of the traditions with modern aesthetics and designs. The artwork should be made with a fine outlook, good utility and great fun.

In 20 plus years of practicing, Zhu refined his skills while creating new artworks. He visited museums at home and abroad and exchanged with modern designers for new ideas. In 2017, Zhu set up a studio with students in an art institute in Langfang, where he created new styles of carved lacquer artwork such as tea sets, wedding decorations, modern toys and accessory artworks attracting youngsters.

China's Jade carving art, which can date back to the Neolithic Age, reached its peak time in the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). The art was inscribed into the national intangible cultural heritage list in 2008.

Selecting materials, designing and carving are the three major steps involved in jade carving. The craftsmen should have mastery in painting, carving and literature in order to complete an artwork, which is designed and carved according to the material itself and the aspiration of the artist. Most of the jade carving artworks convey auspicious meanings.

Zhang Tiecheng, a master of the jade carving art born in Beijing in 1967, has devoted his love to traditional Chinese paintings since childhood. In 1987, he was enrolled in the Beijing Jade Articles Factory and became an apprentice of master Wang Yaotang. In his over 30 years' career, Zhang learned skills from his predecessors and formed his own unique style. Since 2005, he has participated in the repairing of rare jade cultural relics for the Forbidden City.

In the past 20 years, Zhang has accepted more than 30 apprentices. He also acted as part-time professor at various art institutes and vocational schools, set up a creative studio and won numerous honors.

Beijing palace carpet is a splendid example of China's traditional carpet weaving techniques. Known for its intricate production processes and beautiful patterns, the palace carpet represents the pinnacle of Chinese weaving artistry. 

The production involves four main steps: dyeing with traditional Chinese herbs, pattern designing, weaving and shaping, and finally, finishing touches. The art of palace carpet was designated as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2008.

Ji Yu, born in 1971 in central China's Henan Province, has dedicated over 30 years to the repair and creation of traditional palace carpets. In 1995, along with her husband Li Dongyang, she moved to Beijing to specialize in restoring ancient carpets.

Over the years, the couple has insisted on traditional dyeing and weaving techniques. During the process of repairing ancient carpets, they have found and mastered many long-lost ancient techniques. Last year, Ji Yu was accepted as an apprentice of Wang Guoying, a national-level inheritor of the palace carpet tradition.

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