[Explanation] "Choose one thing and live your whole life" is the true portrayal of every craftsman.
Zheng Guohua is a veritable "gourd" craftsman, and his "green cow gourd production skills" was included in the Heilongjiang Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage List as early as 2007.
Now, at the age of seventy, he is still thinking and innovating constantly, giving new vitality to the "gourd" production skills.
[Concurrent] Zheng Guohua, the inheritor of "Green Cow Gourd Production Skills"
My great-grandfather was the first to make gourds, because he was a teacher at that time, because he could teach, write and paint basically, so later he found that painting on gourds was very interesting, so he began to carve and paint on gourds.
In this way, it started from my grandfather, to my grandfather, to my father.
I have developed a love for gourd art since I was a child from my father.
After being rated as an intangible cultural heritage in 2007, I felt that I had a responsibility of inheritance on my shoulders, so I began to conduct systematic research on gourds.
[Explanation] There are many kinds of gourd making techniques, which can be roughly divided into gourd carving, gourd pyrography, and fan-made gourds.
With the in-depth research on gourds and the continuous development of gourd making tools, Zheng Guohua finally chose to use gourd pyrography as the main production method.
In addition to the drafting and outline of traditional pyrography techniques, Zheng Guohua created two techniques in the rendering process, "sand dot crackling" and "image crackling".
[Concurrent] Zheng Guohua, the inheritor of "Green Cow Gourd Production Skills"
What I finally formed on the gourd is this kind of "sand dot crackling", which is mainly influenced by our Chinese painting "Mie's cracking method". In order to highlight the theme and set off the theme, I use this kind of dots, but my dots are different from others. The dots are different, I am deep, shallow, big, and small, like this year in the Year of the Rabbit I created (work) to fly to the moon, and I used "sand dots" behind the moon, the moon looks brighter, and (Moon) feels more profound behind.
[Explanation] If "Sand Dian Cun" is to use "dot" elements to make gourd pyrography more three-dimensional and layered, then "Image Crack" is more about randomness. It is used to draw "circles" on gourds, so that Gourds naturally show variations in shades, making them more aesthetically pleasing.
[Explanation] With the continuous updating of skills, Zheng Guohua's aesthetics of gourds is also changing.
In the selection of gourds, he no longer pursues a single standard of fullness and roundness. On the contrary, those gourds that should be thrown away have become unique works of art under his design.
[Concurrent] Zheng Guohua, the inheritor of "Green Cow Gourd Production Skills"
The long-haired gourd that the common people call, I think it is more interesting, because it is naturally formed with spots, and then the creation is based on its spots.
A shriveled gourd like yours can also produce a good work of art, so now I have this kind of intimacy with gourds. No matter what kind of gourd it is, I will try to make it a good one. artwork.
[Explanation] The ingenuity of the craftsman, Zheng Guohua, in addition to retaining the most basic artistry of gourd making skills, he continues to explore more possibilities of "green cow gourd making skills".
[Concurrent] Zheng Guohua, the inheritor of "Green Cow Gourd Production Skills"
Most of the gourd art we create can only be appreciated, but I think it should be developed for daily necessities and practical value.
Recently, I have considered that this tea canister is called a tea canister. There are three main features of making this tea canister. One is that it is practical, and the tea is kept fresh. The sponge (of the gourd) like mine is still stored inside, so it has a better freshness preservation.
The second can be played with, and the third can appreciate my artwork.
[Explanation] For an artist, inheritance is an innate mission.
Today, Zheng Guohua has two apprentices who follow him all the year round.
Seeing his apprentices patiently studying and operating carefully, he felt extremely gratified.
In the future, he hopes that the "green cow gourd making skills" will shine brighter under the inheritance of his apprentices.
Liu Lu reports from Harbin, Heilongjiang
Editor in charge: [Ji Xiang]