As a part of the Q&A sessions with the masters and their students during the live show of the Chinese intangible cultural heritage (ICH), most masters said they are teaching “few” or “quite a few” apprentices their skill.
One master of coal carving from Liaoning province said the raw material for the carving was so rare and precious that only skilled apprentices were allowed to carve on the special coal. As a result, apprentices of this skill were limited.
The masters said skills of some intangible cultural heritages were too complicated to grasp. They added the learning process can consume several years and learning the skills can make it hard to support one’s life.
Nevertheless, some found it a profitable business. A young man in his 20s now earns 3,000 yuan a month working as a brick-sculpting worker. He learned the skill in less than two years and is now a teacher of a couple of apprentices. He came from Gansu, a northwest Chinese province that was less developed than coastal cities. His salary was much higher than his peers living in the area. One colleague of his earned no less than 6,000 yuan a month. Of course, he was more experienced than the young man.
“I talked with masters of other-style painted potteries, and found things useful to improve my skills”, Lu Lihua, master of Jieshou painted pottery in Anhui province smiled. Jieshou Painted Pottery is a Chinese intangible cultural heritage at the national level. Lu is often invited by the Chinese government to activities where masters of ICH can demonstrate their skills and exchange views.
Skills demonstrations by Chinese ICH masters attract audience members from various age groups. Curious audience members were given a chance to talk with the masters to learn more about those ancient arts.
The live show of the ICH was held from June 10 to June 15 at the China Millennium Monument, Beijing, to celebrate China’s 6th Cultural Heritage Day. The event was held by the Ministry of Culture of China to raise public awareness of ancient traditions. There was no admission charge to the public.
On February 25, 2011, the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Law was approved by the National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, and took effect on June 1. This was China’s first law to protect its intangible cultural heritages.
By Dong Lin
As part of the Q&A sessions with the masters and their students during the live show of the Chinese intangible cultural heritage (ICH), most masters said they are teaching “few” or “quite a few” apprentices their skill.
The gala was my first time having a face-to-face discussion with the practitioners who had hands-on experience in passing on the traditions to the younger generation.
