Chang Kai (right) and Chang Hong (left).

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  China News Service, Beijing, August 5th (Reporter Xing Rui Zhai Lu) In the Beijing Flower Market Community Museum, 10-year-old Tang Han Toya is "creating" plump grape beads.

  She gently shook the box covered with incense ashes, and the incense ashes immediately became flat.

Then, she picked up a grape bead wearing a thin wire, and turned it around in the ash box. The purple "grape" was covered with a layer of hoarfrost, and it looked as fresh as it had just been picked from the grape trellis. Alluring.

Frost the "grapes".

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  Grandma Chang Hong sat next to her and guided her carefully, connecting her granddaughter's good frosted grape beads into bunches by the way.

The steps of frosting made Tang Han Toya feel obsessed.

After a while, she said to Chang Hong, "Grandma, I'm addicted."

Always happy and well done "Grape Chang".

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

"My name is Chang happy"

  What the grandparents and grandsons are making is a kind of pottery that has been handed down for hundreds of years - Grape Chang.

This is a kind of artificial grape made of glass, which has to go through fifteen processes such as blowing, filling, coloring, waxing, and soft frosting.

The finished "grapes" are not only realistic in appearance, but also have a firm fleshy texture when squeezed.

Through the light, you can see the looming "grape seeds".

"Grape often" with fake and real.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  In 2011, "Grape Chang" was included in the third batch of national intangible cultural heritage list by the State Council.

A year later, Tang Hantuoya was born. As the seventh generation inheritor of "Grape Changer", she has a very happy name: Chang happy.

  For Chang Xing, making grapes is like eating and sleeping. It is a common but essential part of life.

When she was very young, Chang Hong was creating an immersive atmosphere for her.

Grandfather and grandson are doing "Grape Chang".

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  A few years ago, Chang Hong rented a farmhouse in the suburbs of Beijing as a studio.

Every time she is on vacation, she will stay for a while with Chang Xing.

She works with her sister Chang Yan, and Chang Happy plays next to her.

After a long time, Chang Xing also started to do it.

  "It's just to play middle school, learn to play. You can't arrest the child and force her, then she will be annoying." Under the influence of Chang Hong, Chang Kai not only did not feel disgusted, but also became "addicted" to making grapes.

  The process of making grapefruit is actually full of dangers.

When blowing glass beads, use a special metal tube to dip the molten glass at high temperature, blow out a glass tube first, and then use the glass tube to blow into a hollow glass ball.

After that, a "handle" should be placed on the glass ball.

The "handle" of the grape bead is an iron wire, and the iron wire needs to be wrapped with cotton paper.

Pretending to be a "handler" is a technical task, too little strength, the wire can't be inserted; too much strength, the grape beads will be broken in the hand, and the palm may be scratched.

Grape beads are as thin as cicada wings.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  The dyeing process is equally difficult.

The grape beads should be repeatedly placed in the hot wax juice and stained with wax, so that the glass beads show the texture of grapes.

  Chang Happy was still young and needed to use the dangerous steps of fire, and Chang Hong would not let her touch it.

"Although she is not allowed to do it, she has to watch what we do."

  String after string, Chang Hong often sits for a day.

Sometimes it starts after breakfast and sits until late at night.

This long process is a bit boring, and sometimes Chang Hong needs to plug in headphones to endure it.

Have fun playing games.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  But Chang happy is a child who likes to be quiet by nature.

She doesn't go out very much, and likes to play games in the house after finishing her homework.

She will also record the clips in the game, edit them into small videos and post them on Douyin.

  In Chang Xing's room, there are all kinds of clay figurines she has pinched.

There are Bing Dun Dun, Xue Rong Rong, mermaid, Santa Claus, and a little tiger for grandma who is a tiger.

A very happy clay figurine.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  In Chang Hong's opinion, Chang Kai's strong hands-on ability seems to be engraved in her genes: "She has never been disgusted (doing Grape Chang) since she was a child, and she is very sensitive to colors and shapes."

"Can't ruin the reputation of the grapes"

  As the inheritor, Chang Kai has a naive understanding of this title: "It is to pass on the things of the ancestors." She may not fully realize the responsibility and pressure behind these three words.

  The technique of grape-feeding device originated in the late Guangxu period.

After the Qing government's national strength was exhausted, Han Qiharibu, who originally lived on salary, could only make a living by selling some clay pottery fruit ornaments.

Later, he developed grape and melon and fruit ornaments made of glass.

Feeder "Grape Chang".

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  On the 60th birthday of the Empress Dowager Cixi, many items were donated by the people, including grapes made by Han Qiharibu.

Seeing the glass grapes, Cixi admired them greatly, and gave them the name "Changzai", and also rewarded them with a plaque of "Tianyichang", allowing them to go home and open a shop to do business.

After the business became big, the reputation of "Grape Chang" spread all over the capital.

  After seven generations of inheritance, "Grape Chang" has a history of more than 100 years.

From its birth to the present, "Grape Chang" has experienced a cycle of prosperity, decline and revival.

In 2003, Chang Hong and his younger sister Chang Yan regained this skill that was on the verge of being lost, and they were also thinking about how to pass it on.

  In fact, the craftsmanship of "Grape Chang" is not impossible to spread.

After the founding of New China, Chang Hong's old aunts and grandmothers recruited a group of apprentices with foreign surnames: "Many people say that our family has secret recipes, but they don't. In fact, they don't. They have been made public in five or more years."

  There is a question that has always plagued Chang Hong. Art like paper-cutting and Chinese painting have their own branches. Why is "Grape Chang" a "single seedling": "It would be great if there was someone like me who was skilled in craftsmanship, we can promote each other.”

Feeder "Grape Chang".

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  As a fifth-generation inheritor, Chang Hong does not make a living with "Grape Chang".

Perhaps it is precisely because it is difficult to become a job with a stable income as a "Grape Chang", it is difficult for Chang Hong to recruit an apprentice with a foreign surname.

  In recent years, she has been thinking, how to make "Grape Chang" keep pace with the times, and how to innovate while retaining traditional skills?

  During the real estate fire a few years ago, many big bosses came to Chang Hong, wanting to improve the "Grape Chang" and then mass-produce it.

Some have proposed adding LED bulbs to glass beads, or making grape leaves out of gold.

  Chang Hong thought about it for a long time, but couldn't think of what this "Grape Chang" would look like.

In the end, she rejected the proposals.

"I'm not against innovation. I'm afraid of ruining the reputation of the grape. Some things must be preserved as they are. This is called heritage."

  To this day, Chang Hong has not found that innovative point.

She feels that the only thing she can do now is to keep the tradition and lay the foundation.

As for where the inheritance of "Grape Chang" will go in the future, it is up to Chang Kai to grasp.

"Pass the grapes to my students often"

  Chang Xing, who will be entering fifth grade in September, also has the unique nature of children.

She "disliked" her grandmother for playing games, and sometimes didn't like to do her homework, and usually talked back to her grandmother.

  On the day of the interview, Chang Hong asked Chang Kai to demonstrate how to use the newly purchased tablet.

Chang Kai, who was playing the game, was reluctant to move the nest. After grandma talked for a long time, she acted reluctantly and muttered, "I'll bother you like this."

Chang happy to cheer for the student party.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  Chang Xing, who picked up the paintbrush, drew a big "fascinated smile" on the tablet, and wrote a sentence: "Let's just say, it's finally a holiday, but there are still a lot of homework waiting for us. Therefore, students Come on, party!"

  In addition to being "Grape Chang", Chang Hong also enrolled Chang Kaixin in many interest classes.

Dance, piano, Go... After learning this circle, Chang Xing still likes painting the most.

There was a small note in front of her desk, which read: "Tang Tang, don't be lazy, you want to take the Central American exam, come on!"

Happy little goals.

Photo by Chinanews reporter Zhai Lu

  To be admitted to the Central Academy of Fine Arts was the goal set by Chang Xing when he was eight years old.

Her aunt, Chang Hong's sister, was an art teacher.

Chang Kai said: "I also want to be an art teacher when I grow up, and then pass on 'Grape Chang' to my students." (End)