Li Wei

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Fifth-generation transmitter of the Foshan Li family lion. He began learning the craft from his father in 1962 and has more than fifty years of rich experience in making lion heads. Within the regional tradition and school record of Paper Effigy Craftsmanship in Foshan, Guangdong: In some places, straw stalks are used in place of bamboo splints for the armature, with plain cloth, silk, or bark paper as the surface; the colorful cloth platform craft (caibu ningtai) of Handan, Hebei, is mounted directly with various colored fabrics. Color decoration also takes on different characteristics from region to region. The mounting process consists roughly of the steps of building the outline with bamboo splints (forming the armature), applying paper (giving the shape), and surface assembly (adding ornaments). The finished lion heads can be divided by form into three major categories: the civil lion, the martial lion, and the young lion. The Foshan lion head is a folk craft art form practiced in the Foshan area of Guangdong Province. Its mounting (zhazuo) technique originated in the Ming dynasty, formally rose to prominence in the locality during the Qianlong reign of the Qing dynasty, and has a history of more than two hundred years to the present day.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

He not only inherits the traditional painted-and-pasted style and characteristics of the Foshan lion head but has also developed its modelling, structure, patterns, colouring and assembly, creating new lion horns in the form of Xiongying Zhanchi (the spreading wings of a fierce eagle), lion eyebrows of Shuanglong Xizhu (two dragons sporting with a pearl), and lion cheeks of Shuangfeng Chaoyang (two phoenixes facing the sun) and Erlong Zhengzhu (two dragons contending for a pearl), making the lion head more vivid in form and distinctive in spirit. He has also created new varieties such as toy lions and fine-art lions. The lion heads he builds are exquisitely crafted, distinctive in style, light and durable. He has systematically organized the painted-and-pasted art of the Li family lion and has successively taken five apprentices, actively transmitting the Foshan lion head craft. Within the documented technical tradition of Paper Effigy Craftsmanship in Foshan, Guangdong: Caizhai (colored paper-and-bamboo mounting) is a traditional folk craft widely practiced throughout northern and southern China. It is inseparable from folk activities such as sacrificial rites, festivals, and entertainments, and through continuous development it has exerted enormous influence among the people. The caizhai technique is based primarily on a bamboo-spline armature covered with paper, supplemented by painted decoration on the surface. Because customs and local products differ from place to place, the specific materials used also vary. In general, northern caizhai is bold and unrestrained with strong contrasts, while southern caizhai is refined and delicate, lively and lovable. Caizhai products take a rich variety of forms, including festival lanterns, lion heads, opera stages, and models of historic architecture. When crafts such as lion heads are made, they are usually modeled on the opera facial makeup of their place of origin; once completed, they are fitted with cloth, hemp, silk flowers, and other ornaments, often achieving a remarkably lifelike and vividly expressive effect. The Foshan lion head draws on the formal characteristics of Guangdong stone-carved lions, pursuing likeness in spirit; both its bodily form and its decorative design employ an exaggerated, romantic mode of expression. The civil lion (wenshi) uses the faces of Liu Bei and Guan Yu as its facial pattern, expressing the lion's gentle, tame, and kindly nature; the martial lion (wushi) uses Zhang Fei's face as its pattern, reflecting the lion's fierce and combative character; the young lion (shaoshi) is a lion-head mask made for children to play with. Distinguished by the facial patterns and coloring of the lion heads, they can be further divided into two major varieties: the Liu, Guan, and Zhang lions and the colorful lion (caishi). Foshan lion heads are both exaggerated and romantic, both majestic and humorous, vivid and true to life, lively and lovable. The patterns and motifs of the lion heads have bold, unrestrained lines — vigorous, flexible, and varied, compact and lively. The colors are clearly layered, with a bright basic tone and a strong sense of rhythm, fully bringing out the different individual styles and characteristics of the various lions. Foshan lion heads emphasize decorative effect: differently colored facial patterns are fitted with ornaments of different colors, setting each other off in radiance; at a glance they appear alive and full of spirit. The anthropomorphic forms, characteristically Chinese coloring, colorful ornamentation, and exquisite, consummate mounting craft give Foshan lion heads a marked local character, making them a typical representative of southern lion-head art. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Rib frame, papering and assembly": A bamboo frame is wired into the head's shape, papered in layers, and finally dressed with velvet, whiskers and tassels. "Civil, martial and young lions": Finished heads fall into civil, martial and young lions, differing in frame, size and temperament, the young form being made for children to play. "Lai Wei's new horns and cheeks": Lai Wei has created eagle-spreading horns, twin-dragon brows and phoenix or fighting-dragon cheeks, giving the heads a livelier presence. "Lion competitions across the diaspora": Lion dancing is a recognised Foshan folk entertainment, and lion-head competitions spread through southern China, Hong Kong, Macao, Southeast Asia and the Chinese diaspora.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

Male, of Han ethnicity, born in November 1945, died in December 2019, a native of Foshan, Guangdong Province. National representative bearer of paper effigy craftsmanship (Foshan lion head), a third-batch national intangible cultural heritage project.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Li Wei · National Representative Bearer Archive