Today is the thirteenth day of the first lunar month, and in the traditional customs of Yangzhou people, "thirteen lights" is a quite important ceremony.
Therefore, in the past two days, many old Yangzhou are busy buying various flower lanterns! Because, there are flower lanterns, there is a taste of the year.
Since the Spring Festival, there have been lamps for sale in Yangzhou. This time of year is also the busiest day for Yangzhou lantern artists.
Nowadays, more and more people favor handmade lanterns, and Xu Genxiang, a lantern maker in Yangzhou, has insisted on sticking to it for more than 20 years, lighting up the New Year with his own pair of skillful hands.
This is Xu Genxiang's home, or it can be said that it is one of his small studios, where he made the flower lanterns.
Xu Genxiang said that he came from a fitter's background, which is also a very important basic skill they need to do modeling lamps.
In addition to making lights at home, Master Xu is also an employee of Yangzhou Craft Factory, will do a lot of large-scale lights, in the early years, during the Spring Festival, he always ran all over the country.
In recent years, while creating large-scale flower lanterns, Master Xu will also tie some traditional small flower lanterns that everyone likes. On the basis of traditional weaving, the technology of headlights is applied to the production of small lamps, he said: "This is also an innovation!" ”
Whenever he talked about flower lanterns, Master Xu's face would show a smile, and he could see that he really liked it.
Doing this thing of flower lanterns, Xu Genxiang has insisted on it for more than 20 years.
What many people may not know is that these craftsmen who make lanterns are busy all year.
After the Lantern Festival, they will start to prepare for the next year's lanterns. At home, you can see everywhere the materials for making flower lanterns.
Master Xu said that Yangzhou people are very fond of traditional rabbit lights, which is also a best-selling model every year. The process of rabbit lamp is also quite complicated: shaping, welding, mounting paste, paper engraving, pasting, these can not be less.
It is said that "professional people do professional things", and the professional tools at Master Xu's home are good helpers for him to do modeling.
Each wire, gradually formed by welding on his hand, making a flower lamp is really a slow process of work.
Xu Genxiang said that this year, he probably made about 1,000 lights.
The period before the Lantern Festival was the busiest time for Xu Genxiang. This year is the Year of the Tiger, and the tiger lamps made by hand have long been sold out.
While we were talking, someone came to the door to order a lantern. Xu Genxiang really did not have time to take this order, and could only politely refuse.
For Xu Genxiang, making flower lanterns is not only his job, what he has to do is to pass on this craft.
Master Xu said that their profession is also facing the dilemma of no one to learn. Yangzhou Lanterns, as a provincial intangible cultural heritage project, needs more and more people to join in.
The requirements for modeling lamps will be relatively high, you need to have the foundation of fitters, your hands should be flexible, you must be able to weld, model, mount, sketch and many other processes, many young people really can't bear hardships and are unwilling to learn.
In his spare time, Master Xu will often go into the community and school to teach everyone to make lanterns, although it is some simple practices, but he feels that this is a kind of inheritance.
In addition to these, foreign learning exchanges can not be less. Xu Genxiang said that the lotus lantern was learned from Nanjing. The production process of lotus lamp is quite complicated, requiring dyeing, shading, embossing flower petals, pasting and other processes. It often takes several months to complete.
Nowadays, electronic flower lanterns are also popular in the market, but Master Xu is not worried at all. He said: "Although electronic flower lanterns have their own selling points, the traditional characteristics and meaning of handmade flower lanterns cannot be replaced. ”
Thanks to these lantern artists who have been sticking to it, it is they who light up the New Year with handmade lanterns, and it is they who surprise the time with a pair of skillful hands.
When a flower lantern is sent to the owner's home with a blessing and is hung high and lit, it not only represents the blessing, but also represents the inheritance...
Text/Hua Yan
Photo/ Xiao Wentian
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Edit: The famous city of Yangzhou
【Source: Yangfan Client】
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