Lu Zhigao

01 · Lineage & Regional School

After graduating from senior middle school in 1964 he studied the craft of porcelain-inlay murals for historic buildings under his elders, applying himself to mastering the entire process of inlay design, selection of materials and colours, preparation of auxiliary materials and practical execution, and attaining the capacity to work independently. Within the regional tradition and school record of Xiangqian in Chaozhoushigongyimeishuyanjiuyuan, Guangdong: It reflects the local people's desire to praise uprightness, seek benefit and avoid harm, and pray for blessings, embodying their fine wishes for good fortune, luck, happiness and wellbeing. Chaozhou porcelain inlay is most concentrated in the urban area of Chaozhou and in the Chao'an and Raoping areas; the Chaozhou Arts and Crafts Research Institute is the protecting unit. In the Qing dynasty the fashion for building ancestral halls and "four-horse-drawn-carriage"-style mansions in the Chaozhou-Shantou region was at its height, so roofs, roof corners, eaves, door surrounds and walls all became places where porcelain inlay could be put to use, and some works were also moved into interior decoration in gardens. In this way porcelain inlay extended from an architectural component into an independent craft object capable of being enjoyed on its own. Chaozhou porcelain inlay has a long history; it was already in use among the people as early as the Wanli reign of the Ming dynasty. By the Qing dynasty, the building of ancestral halls and grand residences in the "four-horse-drawn-carriage" style was extremely fashionable throughout the Chaozhou-Shantou region, and the porcelain-inlay craft used to decorate buildings developed further as a result.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, of Han ethnicity, born in October 1946 in Chao'an County, Guangdong Province. He was born into a family of Chaozhou porcelain inlay artists. Building on tradition, he has experimented continually and made breakthroughs and advances in the craft of inlay. In more than fifty years of practice he has become adept at flat inlay, raised inlay and three-dimensional inlay, and is thoroughly versed in flowers and trees, birds and beasts and operatic figures, creating many outstanding works that people delight in. He actively takes apprentices and teaches the craft, and has trained a group of students who have mastered porcelain inlay and can each hold their own. Within the documented technical tradition of Xiangqian in Chaozhoushigongyimeishuyanjiuyuan, Guangdong: Chaozhou porcelain inlay, commonly known as "tierao" or "kourao", is a technique peculiar to the Chaozhou-Shantou region in which coloured porcelain pieces are cut and inlaid to depict images. Because of its solid texture, it withstands long exposure to wind and rain or fierce sun without fading, and is acclaimed as an art of everlasting brilliance. At that time ceramic production in Chaozhou was highly developed and folk sculpture was in a flourishing period; people began cutting porcelain pieces into simple flowers and inlaying them on buildings. At the end of the Qing dynasty, porcelain-production workshops cooperated with inlay artists to fire various kinds of low-temperature coloured porcelain bowls specially for the purpose; after being broken and cut, these were inlaid into flat, relief or three-dimensional patterns and motifs to decorate the roofs, roof corners, eaves, door surrounds and walls of buildings, and some were also used for interior decoration in gardens. The subjects of porcelain inlay include flowers and plants, birds and animals, historical figures and opera stories. The process steps of Chaozhou porcelain inlay are roughly as follows: first a draft is drawn to fix the outline; then bowls are selected and colours matched according to the position; the coloured porcelain bowls are broken into small pieces and cut into shape with pliers and cutters; and finally the pieces are stuck on one by one with lime mortar or sugar-water lime on to the modelled ground made in lime sculpture. For large three-dimensional figures an armature of iron wire and clay must first be built up. Porcelain inlay and lime sculpture often work together: the ground is modelled by the lime-sculpture artisan and the porcelain pieces applied by the inlay artisan; the two, one modelling and one inlaying, are indispensable to each other. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Flat, relief and three-dimensional inlay": Flat, relief and fully three-dimensional modes, all three commanded by the inheritor Lu Zhigao over fifty years of practice. "Breaking bowls, shearing shards, setting with sugar-lime": Coloured bowls are broken and sheared into petals, feathers and folds, then set piece by piece in sugar-lime mortar. "The grey-modelled core beneath the shards": Large pieces are built up in wire and lime mortar before the shards go on; the core's modelling governs the final volume. "Already in use by the Wanli era": The craft was already used in the Wanli era and expanded with the great wave of Qing hall and mansion building.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Xiangqian (inlay), a fourth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project, in the Chaozhou porcelain-inlay tradition.

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. Lu Zhigao · National Representative Bearer Archive