Liu Jianqiang

01 · Lineage & Regional School

He was born into a family of tin smiths; his father, Liu Shuren, and his elder brother, Liu Jiandong, were both well-known local tinsmiths. After finishing junior middle school in 1984 he learned the craft from his father, and he has worked at tin smithing for more than thirty years, mastering the whole sequence of smelting, drafting, cutting, hammering, filing and soldering together with the skills it entails. Within the regional tradition and school record of Tin Carving Craftsmanship in Lianhua, Jiangxi: Lianhua County is located at the western frontier of Jiangxi Province, in the middle section of the Luoxiao Mountains; with more hills than farmland but rich mineral resources, tin-beating was once the principal means of livelihood for the local residents. The tinsmith community of Lianhua County is relatively concentrated in Jietou Village and Miaobei Village. The history of Lianhua tin-beating can be traced back to the Qing dynasty. According to the Lianhua County Gazetteer, the tinsmiths of Jietou Village and Miaobei Village ranked first among all trades, and nearly every household could beat tin; the "Tin-Beating Song" with which tinsmith masters touted their business is still sung today, and the trade jargon of gangkou is still in use. Lianhua County is located at the western frontier of Jiangxi Province, in the middle section of the Luoxiao Mountains; with more hills than farmland but rich mineral resources, tin-beating was once the principal means of livelihood for the local residents.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, Han ethnicity, born in March 1967 in Lianhua County, Jiangxi Province. His products are varied in type, novel in form, smooth in their curves and finely engraved. Representative works such as the shangzhi pot, lamp posts, large censer vases, flower vases and teapots have been shown in exhibitions of various kinds. He is active in transmitting the craft of tin smithing and has trained several apprentices in his family workshop; since 2009 he has taken part every year in provincial and municipal intangible cultural heritage demonstration events. Within the documented technical tradition of Tin Carving Craftsmanship in Lianhua, Jiangxi: Lianhua tin-beating is a traditional fine-arts form distributed in Lianhua County, Jiangxi Province, in which tin serves as the raw material for handcrafting various everyday and ritual vessels. According to the Lianhua County Gazetteer, the tinsmiths of Jietou Village and Miaobei Village ranked first among all trades, and nearly every household could beat tin. The "Tin-Beating Song" with which tinsmith masters touted their business is still sung today, and the trade jargon of gangkou is still in use. Lianhua tin-beating uses pure tin as its raw material and relies on tools such as scissors, files, hammers, and measuring rulers; through the process steps of melting, drawing, cutting, beating, filing, and welding, it produces tinware of widely varied shapes. The skill of tin-beating lies entirely in the hands, hence the saying "thirty percent beating, seventy percent polishing." Lianhua tinware is finely crafted: evenly wrought tin flowers, gracefully curved forms, and exquisitely carved ornamentation are at once clear and plain, and dignified and elegant. Because tin is less costly than gold and silver and has the qualities of "water held in it turning sweet and clear, wine stored in it growing mellow, tea kept in it retaining its color, and flowers inserted in it lasting long," Lianhua tinware became an everyday utensil of ordinary households, in a great variety of types; the main categories are dining and drinking vessels, ritual implements, stationery and ornaments, everyday utensils, and brewing equipment. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Archival Record of Process Steps": Lianhua tin-beating uses pure tin as its raw material and relies on tools such as scissors, files, hammers, and measuring rulers; through the process steps of melting, drawing, cutting, beating, filing, and welding, it produces tinware of widely varied shapes. "The tin-striker's song": The hawker's song of the tin smiths has survived, along with the trade jargon for the work, fixing process and custom in couplet form. "Four tools": Shears, anvil file, hammer and rule serve melting, marking, cutting, beating, filing and soldering; three parts striking to seven parts filing. "The tin bloom": Its even tin bloom, graceful arcs and fine carving read as both bright and weighty, and tin keeps water sweet and flowers lasting, so it became household ware.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Tin Carving (Lianhua Tin Smithing), a fifth-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. Liu Jianqiang · National Representative Bearer Archive