The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
It takes more than 4,000 knives to carve a portrait of a royal official, and no one can be wrong; it takes skilled artists three days to carve a 1.2-foot-long exquisite figure. Due to long-term shadow puppet carving, the hands of veteran artists have developed thick calluses. However, no matter how high the cost is and how complicated the process is, shadow puppet artists still insist on making it by hand.
The historical story of Luanzhou shadow puppets
Shadow puppetry originated in the Yellow River Basin during the Western Han Dynasty, and is also known as "shadow play" and "lantern shadow play". Shadow puppet performances are not complicated. With a beam of light, a curtain, a few puppeteers and artists who can sing and act, it can be performed lively in the countryside. Luanzhou shadow puppetry began in the Ming Dynasty and has a history of more than 400 years. The donkey shadow puppetry in Luanxian County, Hebei Province is the most famous. Its unique throat-singing technique has its own system, and it has its own style in line with the Luanzhou dialect. It is the only shadow puppetry with specialized singing, accompaniment and donkey shadow puppeteers. The most critical prop of the shadow puppet show is the puppeteer. The unique structure of Luanzhou shadow puppets exudes a rich and humorous local flavor. The dance "Pretty Sunset", which was once a big hit on the Spring Festival Gala, was born out of it and took its shape in terms of characters.
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
In order to apply paint evenly, artists usually apply paint directly on the shadow puppets with their hands
The air in the north in early winter is almost dry and cold, and the slanting sunlight shines all over Xu Yanguangs workbench, making the dozen or so shadow puppets on the windowsill look even more crystal clear. Dozens of small carving knives of different calibers were neatly arranged on the table, with long shadows like soldiers lined up and ready to go. The whole courtyard could only hear the continuous sound of the masters carving knives. The old man has been fond of shadow sculpture since he was a child.Shadow carving tools and donkey skins accompanied him throughout his life. Almost all of the meager income he earned from selling grain and agricultural products was used to purchase donkey skins. The first thing he said when meeting him was, "As long as I carve shadow puppets, I will never be sick."
The mark of the carving knife passed by time
I carefully picked up a plain shadow puppet head on the workbench. Under the backlight, the shadow figures fine leather textures were clearly visible, and there were irregular markings on the hollowed out part of the headdress. "Its so beautiful. Those who don't know would never guess that it is carved from donkey skin." Carving the leather is the most challenging part of the shadow puppet making process, which tests the artists skills. The master occasionally twists it gently with a knife, and a crescent-shaped hollow appears. Sometimes he hits the handle of the knife with a small piece of wood, and a small headdress is born. I noticed that the master didn't use any sketches as a reference. For artists, thousands of figures, sculptures, and styles exist in their minds. Homemade simple wax plates and carving knives of various shapes are all their artistic possessions.
The master held up the shadow figure that originally had the shape of a "king official" and proudly said: "The carving of Luanzhou shadow puppets requires complicated but not messy, dense but not complicated. Fine work requires fine knife skills. Pulling the knife, pushing the knife, turning, setting back, exposing the knife, and hiding the knife, the knife must be accurate, fast, and stable. Carving a 1.2-foot exquisite shadow requires a skilled artist to work for three days to complete. Like this " The complete portrait of "Wang Guan" requires more than 4,000 knives to be engraved on it. You can't make a single mistake, otherwise all your efforts will be wasted."
More than 4,000 dollars! How much effort does it take and how much is it worth? "How much? What do you think?" Master Xus question made me embarrassed, "Lets put it this way, this piece of work carved with thousands of knives is just like my child. How can I be willing to sell it? Someone bought it before. I have also sold a few items, but regretted them after they were sold. Later, I simply asked for a shockingly high price, which scared people away. I kept the items and I felt comfortable..."
In fact, the market is now filled with more shadow puppets made by machines for more than ten yuan. "Wouldn't those machine-carved ones be more regular?" Faced with the common embarrassment faced by traditional handicrafts, Mr. Xu shook his head and replied confidently: "You don't know something. The details of machine-carved and hand-carved shadow puppets will be obvious." Difference. For example, for a tiny circular design, the effect of machine engraving is very round, while for hand engraving, even a master with rich experience cannot make a standard circle. The lines of hand engraving are more natural and smooth, and the most important thing is that they are integrated into the The thoughts and emotions of the craftsmen, and the different styles of the works of different artists, all ensure the rarity of the work. People who really understand it will be willing to spend money to buy something that takes several months to make.Shadow man. "Due to long-term shadow puppet carving, Xu Yanguangs hands have developed thick calluses. Even if the cost is high and the process is complicated, the old artist still insists on making shadow puppets by hand.
Three donkey skins that I can’t bear to carve
As soon as I arrived at the Xu family courtyard, I saw that the small courtyard was occupied by a donkey skin. Shadow puppets were first cut out of cardboard, but the cardboard broke after a few uses and was not easy to color, so they were cut out of leather, with cowhide and donkey skin being the best. There are many buffaloes in the south and donkeys in the north. Luanzhou shadow puppets are also called donkey shadow puppets. The most important thing is the donkey skin.
Mr. After the hair is removed, use a scraper to scrape the leather over and over again. When the thickness is right, lay it flat on a wooden board and nail it, let it dry naturally, and then you will have the milky white carving material you see now." The donkey skin scraper The process is quite difficult, and craftsmen often get blisters on their hands. When the weather gets cold in winter, your hands become like carrots. "Its a pity that good leather is hard to find now," Mr. Xu sighed softly. "Not all leather can be used, and the leather of donkeys that eat feed and grass are different. Nowadays, good leather is becoming less and less. There are three kinds of leather in my warehouse. Zhang Haozhi was collected a few years ago, I can’t bear to carve it, I can’t bear it..." He raised his eyes and looked ahead, his tone full of helplessness and regret.
Draw an eyebrow for the "king official"
The laborious work of selecting and scraping the skin is usually done by men. After the shadow is carved, it is the womans job to color, oil and assemble it. All the artists colors are applied manually, one stroke at a time. The coloring of Luanzhou shadows is based on the characteristics of northerners' clothing and style, and is a type of thick ink and heavy color. There are various facial makeup on the head of the single figure, which is similar to the facial makeup of drama characters. The positive characters eyebrows are curved in circles to make him look more handsome and free; the negative characters eyebrows are exaggerated to look sly and cunning; the clowns eyes are made humorous and frivolous by adding a circle to the eyes; the male characters are richer and the same. Different buns and headdresses on the face represent different identities.
The coloring materials of shadow puppets are also very particular. In order to keep the shadow puppets transparent, watercolor must be used, mainly red, yellow, green and black. To make the shadow puppets translucent, not easy to fade, and durable, another important step is to apply varnish. In order to ensure the excellent transparency of the shadow puppets, artists abandoned brushes and painted the carved shadow figures with their palms. This will ensure that the paint is as dark and light as possible. It is these special techniques that make the shadows of shadow puppet characters and props projected onto the screen look magnificent and crystal clear, with a unique aesthetic. After the lacquer has dried naturally, the head, torso, and limbs of the shadow figure are connected with needles and threads, and the bracelets and sorghum stalks are strung together. After dozens of steps,Process, one filmmaker is considered to have completed all the production.
The shadow puppets witness the disappearance of the figures
Just listening to the steps is very tedious, let alone making them. Mr. Xu said, "Nowadays, young people are unwilling to learn. In the past, this industry paid great attention to the inheritance and confidentiality of craftsmanship. Each family has its own unique skills. In the past few years, I have said that I will accept apprentices regardless of gender. Anyone who wants to learn Thats it. A few children came here, but they couldn't bear the loneliness and left. So when it comes to the collection value of shadow puppets, when we old people are gone, no one will make them. Good shadow puppets can be used for three hundred years. Ordinary ones can last for decades, but now there are fewer people singing shadow puppets. Even if the puppeteers can stay for that long, they can only be used as decorations."
One lamp, one piece of curtain, singing at the top of ones throat for a long time; one piece of skin, carved with a thousand knives, everything is alive again. Once upon a time, shadow puppet troupes, large and small, abounded in the land of eastern Hebei. During the off-season, people would invite shadow puppet troupes to entertain themselves for several nights, especially during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Spring Festival. Over the past hundreds of years, plays such as The Case of the Beauty and the Legend of the White Snake have been performed countless times, but they are still loved and obsessed by the elders of Jidong. People love their own "local opera" and even more the performance and singing of the donkey shadow puppet. However, the reality is that not only the productions of filmmakers have become traditional cultural heritage, but the old artists who sing and sing have also become intangible cultural heritage.
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
1. Select the skin and scrape the pulp. The donkey skin is stretched on a rack to dry in the shade
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
2. Pattern engraving requires a "reverse" carving knife, which is an extremely delicate job
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
3. There is sufficient sunlight in winter, which is very suitable for coloring shadow puppets
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
4. After the lacquered shadow puppets are dried in the sun, the colors will be brighter and the light transmittance will be higher
The picture was taken at Lu Fuzeng Shadow Puppet Studio in Tangshan
5. The exquisite shadow figures are created on simple wax boards. In order to improve work efficiency, each carving is usually made with three layers of leather.
6. The folk shadow puppet troupe performs with two people, and the tacit understanding between the two parties requires years of cultivation
Things to do in Luanzhou Ancient City
Transportation and accommodation:
Luan County is located in the eastern part of Hebei, 220 kilometers away from Beijing and 35 kilometers away from Tangshan. It takes 3 hours to drive from Beijing to Luanzhou Ancient City via Beijing-Shenyang Expressway. Food and accommodation are convenient here, and a standard room generally costs less than 200 yuan. There are a variety of snacks along the streets of Luanzhou Ancient City, especially various barbecues and "Haojia Fire" which are the most local characteristics. In addition, the "Luanhe Red Carp" produced in Luanhe River has fine scales and fresh fins. It tastes so good that it was once a tribute to the palace. "Luanzhou Honeydew Melon" is another specialty, with a thin skin and a large, sweet taste.
Shopping:
The "Timing Pavilion" in Mianyu Street in the ancient city of Luanzhou (south of the road, 100 meters west of the East City Gate) sells authentic Luanzhou shadow puppets. The "shadow puppets" here are well-made and colorful.
Experience:
The "Shadow Puppet Museum" on the west side of Luanzhou Ancient City has special shadow puppet performances and art exhibitions. You can communicate with the artists before and after the performance, and play with shadow puppets and props on the spot.
Photography guide:
The subject of Luanzhou shadow puppets, due to environmental restrictions and many dynamic images, is very suitable for shooting with full-frame digital cameras. The ISO of the digital camera can be adjusted at any time, and with the support of a powerful lens group, it can be fully utilized.
1. Large aperture stop-motion shadow puppet production:
It is generally recommended to shoot in winter because more light can shine indoors through the windows. During production, since the engraving wax plate is black and the donkey skin is white, it is best to use an overhead shot to make the contrast of the picture more vivid; and the three processes of coloring, painting, and drying can be shot with side backlighting or backlighting to improve the quality of the shadow puppets. The three-dimensional effect shows the exquisiteness of this ancient skill. The suitable equipment is mainly fixed focus, ranging from 24mm, 50mm, 85mm and macro. Using a large aperture can help to reflect the subject and highlight the out-of-focus imaging effect. In terms of sensitivity settings, it is best to focus on low sensitivity to enhance the delicate texture of the picture.
2. Slow motion freezes wonderful movies:
The most suitable shadow puppet performance to shoot is the martial arts scene. At this time, the shadow puppet performance has the most live atmosphere. The dancing puppets, singers and accompaniment artists cooperate with each other tacitly, making the scene grand. When shooting martial arts scenes, it is recommended to lower the shutter speed appropriately to achieve virtual reality.The effect of movement and stillness. The applicable lenses are mainly zoom lenses, 16-35mm and 24-70mm are basically sufficient, and the sensitivity is generally around ISO400. The audience in the front row can use a wide angle to express the scene, meter the exposure of the filmmakers on the stage, and add 1/3 to 1 stop to compensate for the exposure; the backstage is the most important part of the shooting, highlighting the singing, the dancers' dancing and accompaniment, and the stage. The back, left and right sides are good shooting positions, which will not affect the performance and will benefit the lens performance. Due to the large scene light ratio, spot metering is the best method of metering to ensure correct exposure of key points in the shot.
