Heroes come from the people:Sun Wukong is Brought to Life by Senior Craftsman of Hubei Provincial Mu

省博高级工艺美术师剪“活”孙悟空

Sun Wukong is Brought to Life by Senior Craftsman of Hubei Provincial Museum

楚天都市报极目新闻记者 卢成汉

通讯员 蒋一正

翻译:王颖 熊紫瑞 卫拉(湖北大学)

Jimu News Reporter: Lu Chenghan

Correspondent: Jiang Yizheng

Translators: Wang Ying, Xiong Zirui, and Lisa M. K (Hubei University)

在湖北省第三届“鄂有绝活”决赛现场,来自湖北省博物馆的工艺美术大师蔡骁龙,现场展示剪纸绝活,令人叫绝。

At the final of the 3rd “Finest Crafts of Hubei”competition in Hubei Province, Cai Xiaolong, a master craftsman from Hubei Provincial Museum, wowed the audience with his extraordinary paper-cutting skills.

蔡骁龙在创作中 Mr. Cai Xiaolong mid paper-cutting

他曾耗时6年,用独创的“细纹连线”绝技,剪出了剪纸界的“黑神话悟空”——大型主题创作《金猴》(该作品长1.35米,宽1.05米)。1月11日,蔡骁龙大师在受访时向极目新闻记者介绍了自己学习和创作的灵感来源。

He spent six years crafting thethemed piece“Golden Monkey”(measuring 1.35 meters long and 1.05 meters wide), a largepaper-cut version of “Black Myth: Wukong”, using his unique “fine line connection”technique. On January 11th, Cai shared the inspiration behind his learning and creative process in an interview with a Jimu News reporter.

在省博参观后坚定了艺术方向

Visit to the Provincial Museum Solidifies Artistic Dream

剪纸是家喻户晓的民俗艺术,从小蔡骁龙受家庭的影响喜欢上剪纸。“小时候没有东西玩,然后就拿着剪刀,剪各种小人物、小动物,当着玩具玩。”蔡骁龙说,他照着图画,剪过《七龙珠》《圣斗士》《三国》《水浒》里的各种人物。从照着画剪到自己创造的剪,逐渐悟出了剪纸中的人物比例、造型的讲究,也渐渐喜爱上剪纸艺术。

Paper cutting is a widely known folk art, and Cai developed a fondness for it from a young age under the influence of his family. “When I was a kid, I had nothing to play with, so I picked up a pair of scissors and cut out little figures and animals as toys,”Cai recalled. He would cut out various characters featured in Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and Water Margin by following illustrations. Over time, he transitioned from replicating drawings to creating his own designs, gradually understanding the importance of proportions and shapes in paper cutting. This process deepened his love for the art form.

1995年,他拜师著名剪纸艺术家刘仕标,学习非遗雕花剪纸。师父告诉他,剪纸与绘画不同,是整体连接的平面镂空艺术,要求“千剪不断,万刻不乱”。

In 1995, he became an apprentice to the renowned paper-cutting artist Liu Shibiao, learning the intangible cultural heritage item of carved paper cutting. His mentor taught him that paper cutting is different from painting; it is a flat, hollowed-out art form with interconnected designs, requiring “a thousand cuts without breaking and ten thousand carvings without disorder”.

“一提到剪纸,人们就会联想到窗花、门联、囍字等,这些都是小工艺品的重复制作。”蔡骁龙说,“其实剪纸可以做得很有艺术性。”

“When people think of paper cutting, they often associate it with window decorations, door couplets, or the ‘double happiness’ character, which are often mass-produced as small crafts,” said Cai, “Actually, paper cutting can be very artistic”.

20岁时,蔡骁龙开始尝试独立创作原创作品。工作之余,他凭自己对《水浒》人物的理解和揣摩,用3年多时间精心剪出了“一百单八将”,作品的人物脱离了明代画本中人物宽袍大袖的传统形象,用现代人物健美的姿态重新造型,让人物更加贴近真实,更有战将的力度和手艺的温度。拿着这些作品,他本想去参加当时的展会。举办方看到作品后不禁感叹:作品很好,有艺术性,但不太适合商业性展会。

At the age of 20, Cai began experimenting with creating original works independently. In his spare time, he spent over three years meticulously crafting a series of paper-cut figures based on his interpretation and understanding of the characters from Water Margin, known as the “108 Heroes”. Deviating from the traditional wide-sleeved, loose-robed depictions in Ming Dynasty illustrations, he reimagined the characters with modern, muscular postures, making them more realistic and embodying the strength of warriors while retaining the warmth of craftsmanship. With these works in hand, he intended to participate in an exhibition at the time. However, upon seeing his creations, the organizers remarked with admiration,“The works are amazing and artistic, but they don’t quite fit the nature of a commercial exhibition”.

这次挫折,让初出茅庐的蔡骁龙顿感迷茫:“我花了这么多的精力去创作,值得么,该坚持走下去吗?”

This setback left the young and inexperienced Cai feeling lost, “I put so much effort into creating these works. Was it worth it? Should I follow through?”

看到儿子的迷茫,蔡骁龙的父亲站了出来,将他拉到湖北省博物馆参观文物,指着曾侯乙墓出土的编钟、铜尊盘等器物说:“2000多年前,中国的老祖宗,就已经用失蜡法,完成了不可思议的编钟等青铜器的铸造,可想而知我们老祖宗的创造力是多么伟大。成就经典不可能没有挫折,你自己得做出选择,是只想玩玩,还是想创造经典。”

Seeing his son’suncertainty about his career path, Cai’s father intervened taking him on a tour of the Hubei Provincial Museum. Pointing to the chime bells, bronze Zun and Pan vessels, and other items unearthed from the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng, he said, “Over 2,000 years ago, our ancestors in China used the lost-wax casting method to create incredible bronze artifacts like these chime bells. This shows just how remarkable their creativity was. Achieving greatness without setbacks is impossible. You need to make a choice for yourself—do you just want to pursue art for fun, or do you want to create something timeless?”

从这之后,蔡骁龙坚定了自己的艺术方向,他从历史中汲取养分,从中华文化宝库中萃取精华。

From then on, Cai solidified his goal as an artist, drawing inspiration from history and extracting the essence from the treasure trove of Chinese culture.

淋漓尽致展示金猴大战鬼怪

A Vivid Display of the Golden Monkey Battling Demons

蔡骁龙创作的第一幅大型剪纸作品《别姬》,主题就是源自历史典故霸王别姬。作品着重刻画了项羽“奈若何”的窘迫境地和虞姬的婀娜身姿,虞姬自刎后还保持着楚国“三道弯”的舞蹈姿态,美态千古流传。

Cai’sfirst large-scale paper-cutting work, Farewell My Concubine, draws its theme from the historical tale of the same name. The piece focuses on depicting Xiang Yu’s distress and helplessness, as well as Consort Yu’s graceful figure. Even after her suicide, Consort Yu maintains the “three-bend” dance posture of the Chu Kingdom, her beauty immortalized for generations.

他的另一幅剪纸作品《江天万类竞自由》,创意取自于鄂西川东的自然风貌及人文,将当地的山、水、云、霞、草木花卉、动物虫鸟及人物集于一图,极具地域特色,描述祖国大好河山华中一隅的千姿百媚。作品入选中国好手艺大展,现被中国工艺美术非物质文化遗产馆收藏。

Another of his paper-cutting works, Boundless Freedom in Nature, draws inspiration from the natural landscapes and cultural heritage of western Hubei and eastern Sichuan. The piece combines elements such as local mountains, rivers, clouds, sunsets, plants, flowers, animals, insects, birds, and people into a single image, showcasing distinct regional characteristics and capturing the diverse beauty of this corner of central China. The work was selected for the “China Fine Handicrafts Exhibition” and is now housed in the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum of Arts and Crafts.

蔡骁龙的代表作是《百鸟仙子》。作品中汇集世界珍稀鸟类112只,形态各异、灵动欢腾,天使化身的仙子居中侧坐,温柔环视着百鸟,端庄大气、美丽祥和。工艺以阳刻为主,是对“细纹连线”技法的顶级展示。他说:“这幅剪纸作品脱离了传统的百鸟朝凤,唯凤独尊的构图思维,而是把人代入到鸟类的世界,人与鸟类等动物,都是平等、自由的,人在鸟类的视角中应该作为天使存在,保护自然生态,让万物和谐共生。”

Cai’s signature work is Fairy of a Hundred Birds. The piece features 112 rare bird species from around the world, each with unique postures, lively and joyful. At the center, a fairy, embodying an angel, sits gracefully, gently gazing at the birds with a serene yet majestic presence that exudes beauty and harmony. The craftsmanship primarily employs the yang carving technique, showcasing the pinnacle of the “fine-line connection” method. He explained, “This paper-cutting artwork breaks away from the traditional composition of ‘A Hundred Birds Worshiping the Phoenix’, which centers on the phoenix as the sole focus. Instead, it immerses humans into the world of birds. Humans and birds, like other animals, are equal and free. From the perspective of birds, humans should exist as angels, protecting the natural ecosystem and fostering harmonious coexistence among all living beings”.

2013年这幅作品获得中国工艺美术“百花奖”金奖,也是湖北省目前唯一获得该赛事金奖的作品。

In 2013, this work won the Gold Award at the “Hundred Flowers Award” for Chinese Arts and Crafts, making it the only piece from Hubei Province to have received this prestigious accolade to date.

2011年,蔡骁龙从中国古代四大名著《西游记》中,获得设计灵感。设计上,整体构图为在众多神佛、鬼怪的围攻中,金猴奋起一根金箍棒,棍影罩定全身,迎击围攻,将金猴勇敢无畏的威武形象体现得淋漓尽致。

In 2011, Cai drew design inspiration from Journey to the West, one of China’s four great classical novels.In terms of design, the overall composition features the golden monkey wielding its golden staff, surrounded and under attack by numerous gods, demons, and spirits. The shadow of the staff envelops its entire body as it counters the assault, vividly showcasing the golden monkey’s courageous and awe-inspiring image.

该作品大量使用阳剪镂刻工艺,力求精确、细腻、自然、流畅、生动,作品图案整体连接,凸显了剪纸“千剪不断,万刻不乱”的艺术特质,将剪纸“细纹连线”绝技发挥到极致。画面中疏密有序的细纹线条,层次分明,最细微处的线段长约3-5厘米,仅有0.1-0.2毫米宽。“这幅作品,涵盖了我之前所有作品中应用的技法和艺术领悟,可以说是自己所学剪纸技艺的总汇。”蔡骁龙说。

This work extensively employs the yang-style cutting and carving technique, striving for precision, delicacy, naturalness, fluidity, and vividness. The patterns are seamlessly connected, highlighting the artistic characteristic of paper-cutting“a thousand cuts without breaking, ten thousand carvings without disorder”.It pushes the “fine-line connection” technique of paper-cutting to its limits. The intricate fine-line patterns in the composition are arranged with a sense of order and depth, with the thinnest segments measuring approximately 3-5 centimeters in length and only 0.1-0.2 millimeters in width. “This piece encompasses all the techniques and artistic insights I have applied in my previous works. It can be considered a comprehensive summary of all the paper-cutting skills I have learned”, said Cai.

《金猴》剪纸局部 通讯员供图 A part of the paper-cutting artwork “Golden Monkey” Courtesy of the correspondent

为了传承推广传统工艺剪纸,蔡骁龙一有机会就开展各类公益性讲学,组织剪纸专业培训结业的学员过百人,培养高校与社会学生万余人,其中徒弟中已涌现出工艺美术大师和传承人。

To preserve and promote the traditional craft of paper-cutting, Cai seizes every opportunity to conduct various public lectures. He has organized professional paper-cutting training programs, with over a hundred students completing their courses, and has trained more than ten thousand students from universities and society. Among his apprentices, some have already emerged as masters of arts and crafts and inheritors of the tradition.

(来源:极目新闻)

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