Walking into the home of Wang Shuoxiang in Dongjie Village, Chongxin County, the warm sun filled this small farm yard, and the chopped firewood was stacked in the corner. The room is neatly arranged with tools and materials for making flower lanterns, and his obsession with flower lanterns is always permeated.
At the beginning of the production of flower lanterns, Wang Shuoxiang entered a state of full concentration, tying lamp stands, pasting paper, appliqués... Under his skillful hands, a series of exquisite and unique, vivid and vivid flower lanterns are presented in front of us.
The production of flower lanterns is a slow work, and there are nearly 10 processes to make a flower lamp, which is time-consuming and laborious. "First make a skeleton of iron wire, then paste the silk cloth on the outside of the wire, stick your hand into the lantern when pasting the cloth, and when you encounter a small lantern, you can only reach into two fingers or a pair of tweezers, so you must be very careful when making it." Wang Shuxiang pointed to a "Nine Lotus Offering" flower lantern and said.
At the age of 13, Wang Shuoxiang became acquainted with Hua Lantern. "When I was a child, the conditions at home were not good, so I gave my hands to the master who made flower lanterns in the village to earn some living expenses, but I didn't expect to make flower lanterns in the future." Wang Shuoxiang grew up in a poor family, followed the village master to learn a variety of crafts, many years of life experience made him a skilled craftsman, for the future to make lanterns laid a good foundation.
Really began to learn to make lanterns at the age of 18, after a long period of contact, Wang Shuoxiang developed a strong interest in making lanterns, determined to step into the lantern industry. Soon, under the guidance of Zhang Shuxing, who has talent and foundation, Wang Shuxiang, who has talent and foundation, mastered the production technology of traditional flower lanterns such as drawing, paper cutting, and skeleton tying.
The left one is Wang Shuxiang, and the middle is Zhang Shuxing.
"Master Zhang has a great influence on me, not only the teaching of skills, but also the love and reverence for traditional culture, and he hopes that this craft can be passed on." Even after 40 years, Wang Shuxiang's gratitude and admiration for Zhang Shuxing are still overflowing.
In the process of learning to make lanterns, as long as you hear that there are light exhibitions in surrounding provinces and cities, Wang Shuoxiang is bound to go to the "scene". "In those years, I went to almost all the exhibitions, and brought my own flower lanterns to ask my predecessors for guidance, and I made great progress during that time." Wang Shuoxiang said with a smile.
With the continuous mastery of the technique of making lanterns, Wang Shuoxiang began to create more and more, forming his own style, and more people came to him to make lanterns. Flower lanterns such as "Nine Lotus Offerings" and "Dragon Dance" produced by Wang Shuxiang are deeply loved by everyone at lantern exhibitions in Baoji, Qingyang, Pingliang, Huating and other areas.
In recent years, the continuous development of science and technology has made more requirements for the quality and style of flower lanterns, especially the creation of large-scale lanterns is more difficult, and the technology integrated is also very complex. In order to make a good lantern, Wang Shuxiang constantly learns and innovates and keeps pace with the times. The large-scale craft lantern "Dragon Horse Spirit" can be called his proud work. "The lamp is 12 meters long and 6 meters high, and it took 5 days to complete, which is a great test of patience and craftsmanship." Talking about this work, Wang Shuoxiang is still very proud.
Today, the 59-year-old Wang Shuoxiang, in addition to insisting on making his own flower lanterns, also teaches this craft to young people. "As long as someone is willing to learn and like to make lanterns, I am not afraid of no one to follow." Wang Shuoxiang is willing to be a "shou artist", inherit the skill of making lanterns, and carry forward the traditional Chinese folk culture.
Source: Chongxin County Chuangcheng Office
Editor: Chongxin County Rong Media Center/Zhu Shuangshuang
Review: Chongxin County Rong Media Center / FuQiang Dai Pengfei