Fuzhou Folk Sculpture Culture: Cork Painting

Fuzhou's cork painting is one of the "Three Treasures" of Fuzhou's arts and crafts. Cork painting is also a unique folk art craft in the world. Its development process is not long, but cork painting can create different styles and diverse forms of themes. This is an effect that cannot be expressed by other crafts. It has quickly become deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and has become a representative of Fuzhou culture.

Fuzhou cork painting, a unique folk craft, is one of the "Three Treasures" of Fuzhou. The themes of its expression are very rich, including natural beauty, buildings, pavilions, flowers, birds, insects, fish, etc. The raw material is the inner cork layer of cork oak trees growing in Portugal, Spain, Arabia and other countries around the European Mediterranean. It has fine texture, natural color, flexibility and elasticity. It can be stored in glass for hundreds of years.

Folk artists in Fuzhou pioneered the use of traditional techniques such as round carving, relief carving, openwork carving, and micro carving to make exquisite handicrafts such as hanging screens, screens, large and small ornaments, and imitation of Song Dynasty traditional Chinese paintings. In particular, they used three-dimensional space to form landscapes. It is rich in layering and depth of field and has high artistic value. The framed screen shows the unique skills of exquisite carving and natural creation. People warmly praised it as "a three-dimensional painting and a blank poem."

Fuzhou cork painting was founded in the early 20th century and originated from Xiyuan Village in the eastern suburbs of Fuzhou. According to legend, in 1914, someone brought back a work similar to "wood painting" from abroad. Folk artist Wu Qiqi and others were inspired by it, and pioneered the use of the cork layer of the cork oak tree as raw material, and used a knife as a pen to carve meticulously. , in a small picture frame, the three-dimensional display of Chinese-style pavilions, scenic spots, strange and unique.

Most of the content reflects the scenery of mountains and waters, scenic spots and historical sites, as well as flowers, plants, insects and fish, with more than 200 specifications and more than 400 varieties of designs and colors. The workmanship is exquisite, the shape is lifelike, and it has the advantages of being lightweight, non-deforming, non-degumming, and anti-corrosion. Some people at home and abroad regard it as the "Three Treasures" of Fuzhou craftsmanship along with bodiless lacquerware and Shoushan stone carvings. There are now more than 500 varieties of cork paintings in Fuzhou.

Making cork paintings requires material selection, carving, splicing, framing and other processes. The beauty of cork painting lies in the artistic technique of "seeing the big from the small", "mountains hundreds of miles away, all in one frame". Products include flat relief multi-level wall hangings, double-sided stand-up transparent screens, etc.

On a section of plain wood, you can see beautiful flowers blooming. The artist’s wonderful pen is full of beautiful rivers and mountains. With the joint efforts of many parties, Fuzhou cork painting, a unique and unique folk craft, will surely be passed down.