Li Maodi

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Fond of carving from childhood and devoted to perfecting his skill, he sought instruction from many teachers. He has worked at the carving of Tao inkstones for more than thirty years and is the local representative of the openwork technique used in dragon-and-phoenix Tao inkstones. Within the regional tradition and school record of Inkstone Making Craftsmanship in Min, Gansu: The Tao River green stone is produced in the canyon area of Lama Cliff at the junction of Zhuoni County, Lintan County, and Min County along the middle reaches of the Tao River in southern Gansu. The Tao inkstone has rich cultural connotations and a strong local character, with very high artistic and collector's value. Taoyan (Tao inkstone) making was founded in the Tang dynasty, flourished in the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties, and has a history of more than 1,300 years.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Born in November 1942 in Zhuoni County, Gansu Province, he is of Han ethnicity. He is a national representative bearer of Inkstone Making Craftsmanship (Tao Inkstone Making Craftsmanship), a third-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. He is an inkstone maker. Through continuous study, and by examining celebrated inkstones such as the Duan and She stones and exchanging views on the techniques of renowned masters and workshops, he introduced Duan and She inkstone methods into the processing of Tao inkstones, bringing the craft to a fuller refinement. What had been ordinary small inkstones for practical use were developed into modern Tao inkstones in openwork, suspended carving and high relief that combine utility with ornamental value and remain affordable. His principal technical hallmarks are a fine and delicate knife technique and flawlessly finished inkstone bodies, and he excels at openwork dragon-and-phoenix inkstones. His representative works include the Jiujiu Guiyi (Nine Nines Return to One) inkstone, the Dongfang Xingshi (Lion of the East Awakening) inkstone, the Zhonghua Minzu Da Tuanjie (Great Unity of the Chinese Nation) inkstone, the Fengming Jiuzhou (Phoenix Crying Across the Nine Provinces) inkstone and the Hongloumeng (Dream of the Red Chamber) inkstone. Within the documented technical tradition of Inkstone Making Craftsmanship in Min, Gansu: The Gansu Tao inkstone, i.e. the Tao River green-stone inkstone, is one of China's famous inkstones. The Tao inkstone is elegant in green form, hard yet fine in quality, lustrous as jade; it produces ink quickly without harming the brush, and stores ink long without drying—long renowned at home and abroad, it is a treasure among the Four Treasures of the Study. The Tao ore belt is surrounded by water on three sides; the inkstone stone is nourished year-round by moist air, so its texture is hard, smooth, and fine, with dark-green streaks within the pale green, forming myriad natural patterns such as flowing water, rosy clouds, clear ripples, and mist. Made into an inkstone, because the stone is moist it can be made to 'bead at a breath'; ink comes down quickly and finely, the ink glows as it is produced, and ink stored in the stone does not dry or spoil for a month. Tao inkstone forms are mainly divided into two types: regular/rectangular inkstones and natural-form inkstones; the inkstone body is composed of three parts—the ink pool, the water pool, and the inkstone cover; by style it is divided into single-slab and double-slab inkstones. The inkstone face is often decorated with patterns and inscriptions; the most representative traditional patterns are dragons and phoenixes and primitive religious vessels. The Tao inkstone is handmade; the production process roughly includes a dozen or so steps such as material selection, blank making, hollowing, fine carving, and polishing. Carving is mainly openwork and relief, supplemented by line carving, round carving, and other techniques; the patterns and forms are antique and elegant, beautiful and graceful. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Documented Process Record": The Tao inkstone is handmade; the production process roughly includes a dozen or so steps such as material selection, blank making, hollowing, fine carving, and polishing.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2009, Li Maodi was announced in the third batch of national representative bearers for Inkstone Making Craftsmanship, with Min, Gansu as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Inkstone Making Craftsmanship in Min, Gansu: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Min, Gansu as its declared area, and Min County Cultural Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.

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 Maodi · National Representative Bearer Archive