Stone Carving
01 · Historical Records
According to records, Yexian talc carving originated in the Song dynasty. In the late Qing, a large number of family workshops making their living from talc carving appeared in the locality, and in the second half of the 20th century these further developed into more than a hundred factory workshops, greatly expanding the scale of production.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Stone carving, also known as "stone engraving" (shike), is a traditional manual carving art that uses stone as its raw material. China's stone-carving art has a long history and has been passed down in an unbroken line over thousands of years to the present day, displaying the consummate technique, ingenious conception and abundant creativity of traditional folk craftsmanship. Stone carving is generally carried out on natural stone materials such as marble, granite, bluestone and sandstone, and in the process the carver must employ a series of practised folk carving techniques, including round carving (yuandiao), relief carving (fudiao), openwork carving (toudiao) and line engraving (xianke). Because these stone materials are taken from nature and can be preserved for a long time, stone carving is mostly used to make large-scale sculptures and decorative sculptures. According to their use, stone-carving products fall mainly into three categories: first, architectural components and ornaments, such as pedestals, memorial archways and stone lions; second, images of deities and Buddhas, such as the statues in the Yungang Grottoes of Shanxi and the Longmen Grottoes of Henan; and third, everyday articles that are both decorative and practical, such as table ornaments and inkstones. Traditional stone carving uses tools such as axes, hammers and chisels; in modern times more advanced implements such as glycerine gunpowder and simple machinery began to be adopted. With the development of society, stone-carving craftsmanship has steadily improved, and related products circulate widely on the market as distinctive goods, possessing an artistic charm all their own. Yexian talc carving is a traditional carving art that uses talc as its raw material, transmitted mainly in the Yexian area of Laizhou City, Shandong Province. Talc is soft and fine in texture and crystal-clear like jade in colour, making it suitable for use as a carving material. Through the transmission and development of craftsmen of successive generations, Yexian talc carving has formed a complete set of techniques, and can carve products in eight major categories — censers and vases, figures, animals, flowers and birds, landscapes, seal knobs, stationery and vessels — in more than two thousand designs. Yexian talc-carving craftsmen are skilled at creating in accordance with the natural grain and colour of the stone, usually setting the form by the material and applying the knife according to the material. The patterns of their works, especially the "clever colour" (qiaose) works, vary endlessly and are a feast for the eyes; once polished and waxed, they appear still more exquisite and extraordinary.
Talc and the clever colour
Leizhou carvers match form and knife to the natural grain and colour of the soft, jade-like talc, producing endless clever-colour effects.
Eight categories, two thousand types
Generations of carvers produced a complete technique covering eight categories and over two thousand product types.
Household workshops and factories
From Song-dynasty origins the trade grew into household workshops in the late Qing and over a hundred workshops and factories in the twentieth century.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Yexian talc carving uses talc produced in Laizhou, Shandong (formerly called Yexian), as its material; the stone is soft and fine in texture and crystal-clear like jade in colour. In the late Qing a large number of family workshops making their living from talc carving appeared in the locality, and in the second half of the 20th century these further developed into more than a hundred factory workshops, greatly expanding the scale of production. Craftsmen set the form by the material and apply the knife according to the material, and their works appear still more exquisite after polishing and waxing. Yexian talc carving can produce products in eight major categories — censers and vases, figures, animals, flowers and birds, landscapes, seal knobs, stationery and vessels — in more than two thousand designs, and is especially noted for its "clever colour" (qiaose) works, which draw their ingenuity from the natural grain and colour of the stone, with patterns varying endlessly.
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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present, under the influence of the market economy, Yexian talc carving is on the decline as a whole, and its protection urgently needs to be strengthened.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Qian Gaochao 03-1272
- Gongbaocaidan 03-1273
- Wang Guoqing 05-2657
- Cao Mingzhu 05-2658
- Tang Jun 05-2659
- Shi Yongen 05-2660
- Yang Jianming 05-2661
- Bao Wuwen 05-2662
- Yuan Jiaqi
- Liu Nengfeng
- Wang Shilin
- Ye Meisan
- Yin Guoan
- Hu Yang
- Liangbinggong
- Caidanjia
- Chen Jiwu
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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