During the season in a riot of colors, international students from Liaoning Communication University continued their journey of “Artistic Depiction of Hongshan Culture” in Liaoning Province.
Traversing a grove of woods with golden leaves, the international students came to the Shenyang Ci Ya Xuan Porcelain Craft Workshop, and visited Zhong Liwei, the inheritor of Liaoning provincial intangible cultural heritage project porcelain carving. They followed Zhong to make efforts to reproduce the representative Hongshan cultural relic, the jade pig-shaped dragon, with porcelain carving techniques.
Walking into the workshop, the international students were instantly amazed by the porcelain carving paintings displayed, such as the delicate and exquisite Court Ladies Adorning Their Hair with Flowers, the vivid and lifelike Five Tigers, the grand and stereoscopic Shenyang Imperial Palace Panorama, etc. Zhong recently attempted to use porcelain carving techniques to reproduce the shape of the Hongshan cultural relic, the jade pig-shaped dragon, and tried carving it on a small porcelain board. At the site, he not only interpreted to the students the significance of Hongshan Culture to the origins of Chinese civilization, but also introduced the artistic characteristics of the representative Hongshan cultural relic, as well as how to use porcelain carving techniques to carve out the jade pig-shaped dragon. “The making of porcelain carving paintings requires various steps, such as porcelain selection, painting composition, carving, and coloring, covering techniques such as chiseling, engraving, thrusting, and grinding.” Zhong taught them how to wield porcelain carving tools with his own hands while demonstrating the techniques.
The workshop was then filled with clear and melodious sounds of “ding-ding-dang-dang”. Each of the international students from Ghana, Cameroon and Pakistan held a small hammer, and continuously hit the carving knife to draw the outlines of the jade pig-shaped dragon on porcelain boards. Curtis, a Ghanaian international student, has a solid foundation in painting. He quickly mastered the essentials of the chiseling technique. After carving, he chose golden acrylic pigment to color the jade pig-shaped dragon on his porcelain board. Through this learning experience, Curtis has fallen deeply in love with porcelain carving, the traditional Chinese handicraft. Moreover, he sincerely expressed his desire to become an apprentice, and Zhong readily agreed.
Hamza, a Pakistani international student, participated in the cultural experience activities of “Artistic Depiction of Hongshan Culture” hosted by Liaoning International Communication Center for the second time. He said that he gained something new every time, and the activities deepened his understanding of Hongshan Culture. Loraine, a Cameroonian international student, took out her mobile phone to record every step of making a carved jade pig-shaped dragon on porcelain, and would post these videos on social media, to let the world witness the exquisite Chinese handicraft, and also the enchanting Hongshan Culture of Liaoning.
