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Dough Sculpture
Molding human figures and animals from clay or
glutinous rice flour is a popular folk art in both urban and rural areas in
China.
Written records
on Chinese dough sculptures date back to the Han Dynasty (206BC-AD220). After
several thousand years of inheritance and development, dough sculptures became a
part of Chinese culture and folk arts, and also objects for study in history,
archeology, folk arts, sculpture and aesthetics. In terms of style, dough
sculptures in the Yellow River Valley are simple, crude, unconstrained and
profound, while those in the Yangtze River Valley are delicate, exquisite and
polished.
Materials and
tools used in making dough sculptures mainly include white flour, scissors, a
kitchen knife, comb, Chinese dates and Bunge prickly ash. With well-leavened
dough, kneaded according to the set pattern, one can produce a vivid dough
sculpture.
During the process, there are three
tips for making the perfect dough sculpture. First, the
honey, lard, powdered sugar and refined powder are made soluble by adding boiling
water, then all is mixed in together with the flour. Edible pigments to form
pastes of different colors are added during this stage. Second, the pastes are steamed for two to three minutes. Care is taken
not to cook them for too long as they can become lusterless. Third, some oil is smeared on the dough sculptures
with a brush to make them gleam and more vivid.
Dough sculptures
are popular wedding and birthday gifts. They are also considered appropriate for
prayer and memorial ceremonies and sacrificial offerings. Farmers place steamed
dough sculptures before spirit tablets. Today, dough sculptures often appear
among dishes on high-grade banquets to beautify and decorate the dishes, and add
foils to the banquet atmosphere.
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