They made the "still time" flow, and the master and apprentice of the "Forbidden City God" sent more than 800 videos in two years, showing the fine process of repairing the clock to heal netizens
Recently, "The Forbidden City's Handsome Mentors and Apprentices Bring Fire to the Watch Restoration Industry" rushed to the hot search. Master Wang Jin and apprentice Qi Haonan were madly praised by netizens for their earnest and dedicated looks when repairing watches and clocks!
It turns out that these high-value mentors and apprentices are the two watch restorers who appeared in the popular "I Repair Cultural Relics in the Forbidden City" a few years ago. Master Wang Jin is called by netizens because of his excellent skills and gentle temperament. "God of the Forbidden City".
Beginning in 2019, apprentice Qi Haonan posted their daily routine of repairing clocks in the Forbidden City on the Internet, and more than 800 wonderful videos attracted netizens to frequently urge them to update.
In an interview with Ziniu News reporter, Qi Haonan said: "This major was very unpopular at the time. I was the only one who signed up. Now our department has also 'new', and many young people have joined, and the number has increased to 7."
Ziniu News reporter Zhang Bingjing
More than 800 videos have been posted in two years
Showing the fine clock repair process to heal netizens
Six years after the broadcast of "I Repair Cultural Relics in the Forbidden City", the enthusiasm of netizens for the restoration of cultural relics and clocks has not faded.
Recently, Wang Jin and Qi Haonan, the "handsome mentors and apprentices of the Forbidden City" who appeared in the documentary, have been hotly searched for the updated video of the restoration of cultural relics and clocks on the Internet. Many netizens praised: "It seems that the still time is flowing again. So healing!"
Qi Haonan said that the recent video recorded the process of repairing the clock in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
This clock has three-dimensional carved puppets of the Eight Immortals. After repairing, these puppets will rotate around the circular gears with crisp music, which is quite interesting. "Many netizens praised this clock for its beauty, and some people said that it was like an ancient craftsman. dialogue."
Among the videos released, the most viewed is the Swiss Magician Clock, "This clock is the most complicated clock that Master took me to repair, with thousands of parts disassembled. There are seven sets of systems in the engraving. The connecting rods for performing magic are all inside the characters, and the space is very small. They have to be removed and adjusted before they are put in. When installing, be very careful, do not bump, do not touch, or squeeze, and there is a slight deviation. It affects the precision of the performance.”
Qi Haonan told reporters that the clock has been repaired for nearly a year. "When I took it to the music clock exhibition in the Netherlands, the clockwork was fully wound, the music started, the magician's doll began to change the colored balls in the cup, and the birds in the house spread their wings and sang. It's very amazing. Now this bell is on display at an exhibition jointly organized by the Mountain Resort and the Forbidden City."
"Repairing the Bell" by preaching and teaching
Handsome apprentice takes over "Forbidden City God
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"I was the only one who signed up"
Regarding the idea of the apprentices shooting videos, Master Wang Jin expressed his approval, "I sometimes help out too, which is very interesting. In the past, the audience of traditional crafts was too small, so not many people saw them. The form of online video makes it easier to Many people can see it, and I feel good.”
After "I Repair Cultural Relics in the Forbidden City" became popular, many people were deeply impressed by Wang Jin's gentle and elegant temperament.
Wang Jin, who was born in 1961, is the third-generation successor of the Forbidden City's clock restoration skills. He is the second-generation successor of the Forbidden City's clock restoration, Ma Yuliang. He has been working in the clock restoration department for more than 40 years.
In 2021, after Wang Jin retired and was rehired, his apprentice Qi Haonan, as the fourth-generation Forbidden City watch restorer, began to be in charge of all matters in the watch group.
Qi Haonan, born in 1981, is a native of Beijing. He studied at North China University of Technology, majoring in mechanical automation. After graduating from university, he applied for the cultural relic restoration department of the Forbidden City.
"I wanted to learn a skill at that time, and my family was very concerned about traditional Chinese culture, so I chose to go to the Forbidden City. After the official admission, I found out that I was the only one who signed up for the Watch Restoration Department." Qi Haonan said with a smile: "This The industry was too cold at the time.”
In August 2005, Qi Haonan officially went to work. He still remembers the scene at that time: "This industry is under the system of teachers. Before going to work, I was still worried about whether Master would be as strict and harsh as in the TV series. When I entered the door and saw Master, he was thin and thin. Thin, kind and gentle speaking, my dangling heart was relaxed. In this way, I gradually got to know Master and he is like my father and like a friend. "
Be slow in doing this
If you are tired, you can go to the Imperial Garden for a walk.
Master and apprentice get along day and night, and without knowing it, they have worked together for more than ten years.
Qi Haonan said: "Master and I go to work at 8:00 in the morning and leave at 5:00 in the afternoon. When repairing clocks, we often forget the time, and when we look up, we find that an hour or two has passed. If there is a problem, if you are particularly anxious, you will get up and go to the imperial garden outside, look at the flowers and trees outside, the green fields, blow the wind, and go back to work when your mind is clear."
Wang Jin told reporters: "The most important thing in our business is patience, slow down and don't be in a hurry. If you are in a hurry, you may break or lose some parts during the repair process. The cultural relics in the Forbidden City are all unique. Or only one pair, don't lose or break it, otherwise it will cause huge losses."
When Wang Jin and his apprentice repaired the clock together, the drawer of the table must have been opened, and he was always on guard against the falling of small parts.
When cleaning rusted parts, I still use kerosene as in the past, without using rust removers that seem to be "high-tech". "The current rust removers are more powerful and do not feel so moist. Getting used to kerosene, nothing else feels better."
The apprentice cannot move the cultural relics in the first year of entering the Forbidden City. He has to build a large number of ordinary clocks to gain experience. After passing the assessment in one year, he can repair the simplest clocks in the cultural relics in the second year. Qi Haonan still remembers the first successful independent repair. It is a French windwheel barometer. "It took me about a month to repair it, and I still remember the excitement after seeing the clock go automatically."
Newcomer to the studio
Craftsmanship Inherited in Collision
When the film "I Repair Cultural Relics in the Forbidden City" was broadcast in 2016, only two masters and apprentices were busy in the watch restoration department.
"Beginning in 2017, more people came to the Forbidden City to apply for jobs. Master accepted three more apprentices, and I accepted two."
Qi Haonan discovered that this generation of restorers was different from before.
They are no longer limited to traditional restoration, but have their own research directions on the basis of restoration and combined with their professional expertise. "Watches and clocks are not only mechanical, but also enamel, bronze, lacquer, etc. in appearance. Jewelry appraisal, jewelry inlay and enamel restoration, has her own set of methods. My apprentice is a woodworker, and she can use the skills she has learned to turn over molds and ornaments on some wooden clocks. Sculpture."
"There is also a returnee doctor in the studio, he is studying mechanical principles, we want to use his experience to establish a set of our own standards for the restoration of cultural relics and clocks, and slowly evolve from a team standard to an industry standard, and then to a national standard. ."
At present, the Forbidden City has a collection of more than 1,500 cultural relics and clocks. Wang Jin has repaired more than 300 pieces, and Qi Haonan has repaired more than 100 pieces. Wang Jin said: "The participation of young people has brought new vitality to traditional skills, and this work will continue. There is no end to the restoration of cultural relics and clocks. Each repair is the beginning of mastering new knowledge, so it is still necessary to repair and learn. I hope that in the future, more ancient clocks will sound the crisp bells that cross the times again. ."