Chen Qinghe

01 · Lineage & Regional School

He was born into a family of bamboo and rattan weavers and learned bamboo-strip work from his father Chen Guisheng as a child. In 1957 he was admitted to the Xiamen Luchao Arts and Crafts School, where he studied under the folk bamboo-weaving artisan Xu Qijun. Within the regional tradition and school record of Bamboo Weaving in Anxi, Fujian: Anxi bamboo-and-rattan weaving is a traditional fine-art form spread in the area of Anxi County, Fujian Province, combining bamboo and rattan weaving techniques. Bamboo and rattan woven articles are widely used in the daily life of the local people, comprising 14 categories and more than 40 varieties, including bamboo hoops, sieves, cages, fences, and lamps. During the Ming and Qing dynasties the number of Anxi bamboo-and-rattan weaving artists continually increased and the level of craftsmanship continually rose. In the 1970s Anxi bamboo-and-rattan weaving developed on the basis of transmitting its core techniques, refining processes such as floral ribbing, pasting, dyeing, and bleaching, and giving full play to the skills of carving, polishing, dyeing, and appliqué, so that products took on exquisite, beautiful forms in a great variety.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, of Han ethnicity, born in August 1940 in Anxi County, Fujian Province. He is a national model worker. His bamboo and rattan works are richly varied in pattern, simple and robust in character, and highly refined. He created such weaving structures as flat-smooth weaving, enriching the bamboo and rattan craft of Anxi. Several of his works are held in the collection of the National Museum in Poland. He lays stress on transmitting the craft, and his two apprentices have now taken on the responsibility of carrying Anxi bamboo and rattan weaving forward. Within the documented technical tradition of Bamboo Weaving in Anxi, Fujian: Anxi County abounds in bamboo. According to the “Products” section of the Anxi County Gazetteer (Qianlong-era edition of the Qing dynasty), the county contains more than twenty species, including mao'er bamboo, Jiangnan bamboo, snow-purple bamboo, fishing-rod bamboo, stone bamboo, bitter bamboo, mottled bamboo, arrow bamboo, square bamboo, human-face bamboo, ruo bamboo, sheng bamboo, ma bamboo, thorn bamboo, Guanyin bamboo, palm bamboo, and reed bamboo, providing sustainable raw materials for bamboo and rattan weaving. Anxi bamboo-and-rattan weaving has a long history. According to documentary records, more than a thousand years ago bamboo articles such as baskets used for carrying and roasting tea were already popular in Anxi. Anxi's thriving tea industry promoted the continuous improvement and innovation of bamboo-and-rattan weaving. For more than a hundred years bamboo-and-rattan weaving has been a household livelihood or sideline for the people of Anxi. Anxi bamboo-and-rattan weaving inherits weaving methods dating from the Tang dynasty. Its main raw materials are mao bamboo and some timber, Hainan rattan, dragon's-whisker rattan or local mountain rattan, mao'er rattan, as well as dyes of various colors and alkyd varnish. Technically it comprises six basic processes: planing and splitting, weaving, turning the bamboo skin (fanhuang), lathe patterning, patchwork patterning, and bead stringing. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Bamboo and rattan, six basic processes": Its materials include bamboo, Hainan rattan and local vines, worked through six processes: planing, weaving, turning, turning flowers, marquetry and bead stringing. "Fourteen categories, forty-odd kinds": Bamboo-and-rattan wares, from hoops and sieves to cages, fences and lanterns, run to fourteen categories and over forty kinds. "The Chen family lineage": Once passed down mainly within the Chen family, the craft now also moves through apprenticeship and school teaching; Chen Qinghe's works are held in Poland's national museum. "Bamboo species in the Qianlong gazetteer": The Qianlong-era Anxi gazetteer lists more than twenty local bamboos, giving the craft a sustainable supply of material.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

He is a representative bearer of Bamboo Weaving (Anxi Bamboo and Rattan Weaving), a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. In 1987 he received the Fujian Provincial May 1 Labor Medal, and in 1988 he was named a model worker by the Fujian Provincial People's Government.

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. Chen Qinghe · National Representative Bearer Archive