Xu Songsheng
Lineage & School of Heritage
In order to further enrich his professional knowledge, he has also formally taken masters to study engineering quality management and other architectural subjects.
Mastery, Signature Works & Repertoire
Male, of the Han ethnic group, born in 1953, a native of Yongding, Fujian. A national representative bearer of the Kejiatulou Building Craftsmanship, a first-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. Hakka earthen houses (tulou) are economical and durable, cool in summer and warm in winter, and possess strong fire resistance. From childhood Xu Songsheng learned the craft of building Hakka earthen houses from his father. After graduating from senior high school, he took up the construction of round and square earthen houses in masonry and carpentry; under his father's instruction by word and example his skills improved rapidly, and he became especially adept at designing residential architectural styles in accordance with Hakka cultural customs. For many years Xu Songsheng has been engaged in the construction and repair of Hakka earthen houses and dwellings. In 2001, the Jiqing House and Yuqing House at Chuxi, which have a history of more than six hundred years, had fallen into disrepair through the passing years and faced the danger of collapse; through his careful construction work, the earthen houses were restored to their historical appearance. Over the years Xu Songsheng has imparted his skills to his apprentices without reservation, making an active contribution to the transmission of the Kejiatulou building craft.
References & Archival Sources
Representative Items of This Bearer
Profile
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。