Quyang stone carving

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Quyang stone carving

Applicant: Quyang County, Hebei Province

Project No.: 333

Project No.: Ⅶ - 34

Time of publication: 2006 (the first batch)

Category: traditional art

Region: Hebei Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Quyang County, Hebei Province

Protection unit: Quyang County Cultural Center (Quyang County Library)

Introduction to Quyang stone carving

Applicant: Quyang County, Hebei Province

Quyang County is located in the west of North China Plain and the east foot of Taihang Mountain, which is rich in marble resources. Since the Western Han Dynasty, stone workers in Quyang used marble to carve steles and other objects. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, the statues of Buddha and stone lions in Quyang stone carving had a unique style. In the Tang Dynasty, Quyang became the birthplace and carving center of white marble statues in northern China. By the Yuan Dynasty, Quyang stone carving was well-known, and a number of outstanding folk sculptors such as Yang Qiong, Wang Dao and Wang Hao emerged. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Quyang's stone carving techniques were more exquisite. In the late Qing Dynasty, Quyang people's sculptures such as "crane" and "Gan Zhi Mei" won the second place in Panama International Art Fair, so that "Quyang stone carving is known all over the world". After the founding of the people's Republic of China, Quyang stone carving artists have successively participated in the carving work of the monument to the people's heroes, the Great Hall of the people, Tiananmen Square restoration and other top ten construction projects in Beijing, and the construction project of Chairman Mao Memorial Hall. In 1995, Quyang County was officially named "the hometown of Chinese carving" by the State Council.

Quyang carving technology has experienced thousands of years without interruption and is well-known at home and abroad. With the expansion of Quyang's carving materials from marble and jade to wood, ivory, bronze, stainless steel and so on, its carving techniques have also changed, including round carving, through carving, carving, relief and other modeling categories, with different techniques. Nowadays, the themes of sculpture are quite wide, including traditional antique architectural ornaments and modern figures; garden sculptures and family decorations; birds and animals, fish and flowers; hundreds of meters of masterpieces and exquisite works. Its carving technology is not only good at making use of special skills such as planing, planing and opening face, but also good at visual observation and shaping. It adopts "fine" technology, and achieves the standard of "straight line, flat surface and flexible bending". The main inheritors of Quyang stone carvings are Lu Jinqiao, Zhen Yancang and an Rongjie.

With the development of society and the progress of science and technology, the traditional craft of Quyang hand carving has been constantly impacted. Cutting, hand planing, tool making, hand hammering and brazing and other techniques are almost lost, and the model is no longer made. In addition, in order to meet the needs of the market, the carving materials and types are affected, and the production of Buddha statues is less and less, which also causes a lot of damage to the preservation and inheritance of traditional Quyang stone carving techniques. Measures must be made as soon as possible to save the ancient craft of Quyang stone carving.