The three-year period has arrived, and Ziqi has returned.
On the evening of November 12th, as I was carrying takeout and humming a tune to prepare for a meal, I clicked on Bilibili only to see Little John and a group of pigeon kings in a deathly silence.
Just as he was about to scold the current UP host for not being involved in human affairs, he caught a glimpse of Li Ziqi running through a small window, crossing paths and fields, and welcoming a brand new sunrise on the familiar yet unfamiliar sea of clouds
The hostility dissipated in these ten seconds, just like countless moments three years ago. Whenever the chaos in life made us unable to move, the girl and mother-in-law on the sea of clouds, the morning glory on the mountain, and the little yellow dog would knock us unconscious and drag us into the most primitive softness.
Once again, Li Ziqi returned to her loyalty to the Internet.
With her handmade standalone cloakroom, purple lacquered wardrobe, and Sichuan brocade velvet flowers, she has returned to everyone who knows the name of Ziqi – the top of the rural area who filmed videos based on the year, lived seriously, and inherited intangible cultural heritage many years ago.
Three videos of continuous updates in one breath, letting everyone know that in these three years, she not only did not forget to live hard and forget intangible cultural heritage, but also polished her skills and tried more of the ancestral art of life.
In an exclusive interview with Xinhua News Agency reporters, everyone also learned that in the past three years, Ziqi has been busy catching up on sleep, accompanying her grandmother on trips, and visiting more than 100 intangible cultural heritage inheritors and cultural workers. This has also given her motivation and direction for the next period of time.
The works we see today, such as “Carving Lacquer Hidden Flowers, Carving Purple Qi from the East!” and “To Everyone Who Knows My Name,” are the results of Ziqi’s return from studying and training. Behind them are China’s intangible cultural heritage – Chengdu lacquer art and Chengdu brocade weaving.
In fact, observant friends can find that both lacquer art and Shu brocade (meaning “flower brocade woven in Chengdu, Sichuan”) are iconic skills of Chengdu’s intangible cultural heritage. In the past without modern chemical materials, the ancient Shu people used natural materials and imaginative craftsmanship to create exquisite and unparalleled handicrafts that even today’s people are amazed by.
In ‘To Everyone Who Knows My Name’, Ziqi mainly carried out sericulture and silk rolling work, and the weaving was mainly completed by the Shu Brocade Research Institute. Today, we will mainly talk about lacquer.
In the lacquer video, Li Ziqi spent over a year creating and filming a complete set of lacquer art processes, ultimately presenting us with a purple lacquer wardrobe that symbolizes “Kirin looking back, never worrying about anything”.
The so-called lacquer refers to a kind of natural white sticky lotion that flows from the phloem after cutting the bark of the lacquer tree, and then can be processed to make paint. We can also see from the Chinese character composition of “lacquer” that it symbolizes the appearance of trees flowing liquid.
In ancient times, collecting natural lacquer required manual labor on lacquer tree trunks up to 20 meters high. First, a knife was drawn and a clam shell was used to pick it up, giving it the nickname “Seven Trees”. The “Seven” symbol represents the shape of cutting trees and flowing milk.
Essentially, the two characters’ qi ‘and’ qi ‘both refer to ancient lacquer making techniques. The Song Dynasty phonological work’ Jiyun ‘recorded’ qi ‘or’ qi ‘, while the’ Shan Hai Jing ‘recorded’ Gang Shan Duo Qi Mu ‘, indicating that the two characters are often used interchangeably.’ Purple lacquer wardrobe ‘and’ Zi Qi has already returned ‘are not just random associations among netizens.
It can only be said that good learning and puns can make one appear knowledgeable and knowledgeable.
The natural lacquer collected by ancient people from lacquer trees can be processed into raw lacquer, mature lacquer, and colored lacquer. By applying them to suitable wooden substrates or other materials, a cheap, corrosion-resistant, lightweight, easily obtainable, heat-resistant, acid resistant, wear-resistant, drop resistant, and water-resistant “lacquerware” can be obtained.
The ancient saying goes, “Dripping paint into the soil will not rot for a thousand years.
Did something so good come to mind for you?
That’s right, it’s plastic.
In ancient times without chemical production technology, our ancestors used natural materials and tree sap to produce similar, more practical, artistic, and environmentally friendly daily necessities.
In the large number of Chengdu lacquerware unearthed from the tombs of Yingjing and Qingchuan during the Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period, we can see that its types include lacquerware boxes, lacquerware plates, lacquerware pots, lacquerware cups, lacquerware boxes, lacquerware combs and other daily necessities, indicating that even at that time, lacquerware was no longer a rare and valuable item.
Such high practicality, artistry, and accessibility have enabled lacquerware to blossom everywhere in East Asia, where lacquer trees are widely distributed, and quickly become popular.
As a traditional Chinese arts and crafts that can be traced back to 8000 years ago, “Han Feizi” records: “Shun’s Zen Buddhism spread throughout the world to Yu. Yu used it as a sacrificial vessel, ink dyed the outside, and Zhu painted the inside. Man silk was used as the carpet, and Jiang Xi was quite popular. The cup was carefully crafted, and the tassel was decorated
That is to say, since the time of Dayu, the Chinese people have begun to make and use lacquer.
Although there is still doubt in the academic community whether the use of lacquer art occurred earlier in ancient China or Japan, both countries have their own native species of lacquer trees and began to discover and use this unique gift belonging to East Asia in prehistoric times.
However, there is no dispute that in the prolonged population migration and tribute system that followed in East Asia for over 1600 years, East Asian culture presented a pattern of radiating and spreading from the ancient Central Plains region to surrounding countries. China’s agricultural lifestyle, diverse arts and crafts techniques including lacquerware, and Buddhist art from the Six Dynasties, Sui, and Tang dynasties had a profound influence on neighboring countries.
According to the “Biography of Tang Monk’s Eastern Expedition”, among the items prepared by Jianzhen for his second journey to the east were “thirty lacquered boxes and plates, and a golden lacquered clay statue
With the exchange and accumulation of time, the lacquerware craftsmanship of China, Japan, Vietnam, and other countries became increasingly outstanding, gradually giving rise to their respective preferred art styles.
In the minds of Europeans with limited resources, China is called ceramics, Japan is called lacquerware, and Argentina is called silver
Among them, Chinese lacquerware is famous for its complex craftsmanship, three-dimensional shapes, and diverse styles.
Over thousands of years of practice, Chinese lacquerware has gradually formed various schools of art, such as Fuzhou Bodi lacquer art, Beijing gold lacquer inlay, Chengdu gold and silver flat lacquer, Shanxi Pingyao Tuguang lacquer, Shanxi Xinjiang clear rhinoceros (cloud carving), Anhui rhinoceros skin lacquer, Hubei Chu style lacquerware decoration skills, Guangdong Yangjiang lacquer, Guizhou Dafang skin tire lacquerware, Yi ethnic lacquerware, etc. These schools are too powerful to be fully described.
The techniques used by Li Ziqi in the video, such as carving lacquer with hidden flowers and needle carving with a knife, are typical of the important characteristics that distinguish Chengdu lacquer art from lacquer art in other regions.
Chengdu lacquer art has always been known for its complex processes, meticulous production, and long time consumption, especially for its “three carvings and one carving” – carving silver silk, carving flowers and filling colors, carving lacquer hidden flowers, and drawing knife needle carving, which are highly characteristic of Chengdu region.
Since ancient times, Bashu has produced lacquer and cinnabar, and is also one of the earliest regions to cultivate lacquer trees, making Chengdu one of the main production areas of Chinese lacquerware from a long time ago.
At the Sanxingdui site, a carved lacquered wooden piece was unearthed. The “extremely thin, jujube red hard shell” left by the layer of soil lacquer on the inner side of the gold face cover of the bronze human head during the Sanxingdui period shows that the ancient Shu people were proficient in the craft of making lacquer.
By the Qin and Han dynasties, Sichuan had already become the center of lacquerware production in China. The Han Dynasty lacquerware unearthed from various places often had inscriptions such as “Chengshi Cao”, “Chengshi Fu”, “Shu Jun Gong Guan”, “Guanghan Jun Gong Guan”, etc. Among them, “Zaotong Zao” and “Fu” referred to the process of lacquerware production. At that time, lacquer craftsmen proudly left the mark of “Made in Chengdu” on lacquerware.
In Yang Xiong’s “Shu Du Fu” of the Western Han Dynasty, there is also a description of the Chengdu lacquerware workshop in the Han Dynasty, which described the prosperous development of lacquerware in Chengdu at that time, with “carving and buttoning utensils, and a hundred skilled craftsmen”.
Later in the Tang Dynasty, Chengdu lacquerware still held an important position in many schools. In the “Yunnan Carved Lacquer” section of “Wanli Yehuo Bian”, it is recorded that “in the middle of the Tang Dynasty, Dali State broke through Chengdu and captured hundreds of craftsmen, making Yunnan lacquerware weaving techniques unparalleled in the world”.
It can be seen that Sichuan’s lacquerware craftsmanship still has strong vitality after being introduced to Yunnan, and through local integration, Yunnan lacquerware has experienced a prosperous period for hundreds of years.
It can be said that Li Ziqi is truly the ambassador of Chengdu’s intangible cultural heritage. In her first video of her comeback, she showcased the art of cutting lacquer, making lacquer, tire making (as long as the wardrobe is ready), base ash, painting, carving lacquer, mother of pearl, polishing, cleaning, and polishing to millions of netizens at home and abroad.
However, with the support of contemporary materials science, the decline of lacquerware is also inevitable.
Not only have there been countless solutions for the demands of being cheap, corrosion-resistant, lightweight, easy to obtain, heat-resistant, acid resistant, wear-resistant, drop resistant, and water-resistant, but the same consumer scenarios have also been rapidly replaced by plastic products, and even many demands themselves are no longer necessary.
Porcelain bowls that cost only one or two yuan can be found all over the street, and buying five packs of instant noodles at supermarkets and giving away large soup bowls. In the context of contemporary productivity and universal benefits, lacquerware has long been relegated to its small yet beautiful, slow yet refined positioning.
Moreover, the process of collecting and making paint may seem difficult, but in reality it is not at all simple.
Every part of the lacquer tree contains lacquer phenol, and about 50% to 75% of adults are allergic to lacquer phenol. Many people experience allergic reactions just by passing by lacquer trees, and biting trees is not just a name for itself.
Artisans may suffer greatly from redness, swelling, and unbearable itching during the process of contact. During the paint cutting process, Ziqi suffered from severe allergies and the entire team went to the hospital together to receive anti allergy injections.
It is also these various materials that are no longer suitable for contemporary industrial society that make people think of paint. The first reaction is no longer the difficult to collect tree sap, but the contemporary coatings such as chemical paint, synthetic paint, paint, and functional paint. People only realize the true meaning of paint after watching Li Ziqi climb up and down for a long time to collect.
Just like how we still say ‘dial’ and ‘make a call’ when making a phone call today, the phone wheel that truly needs to be turned has long disappeared from our daily lives and entered museums.
However, this is also the reason why people still love Li Ziqi despite not seeing him for many years.
Contemporary society is like a precision gear, where each of us is a small ring that rotates on time. Our lives have become prosperous and secure, but at the same time, the division of labor in society is highly refined, making it even more difficult for individuals to complete any full process operation.
But there is such a person who built an extraordinary house on a simple mountain, started raising silkworms and spinning silk from scratch, learned Chengdu lacquer art, and carved a qilin in the back and forth of Sichuan lacquer forest.
Through intangible cultural heritage, people have grasped the craftsmanship of crossing time and space, as well as themselves.
People need cities, as well as fields and some slow paced things.
As Ziqi said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua News Agency, many traditional cultures are like elderly people in their twilight years. They have gone through the long river of history, constantly looking back, and longing to find some value that belongs to them in this era where they are not so needed.
Nowadays, we have a better life and more choices, allowing more and more craftsmen who love traditional culture to voluntarily join. The prosperity of self media has also made more people turn back to see and love these elderly people.
On today’s social media, there are a large number of bloggers actively spreading Chinese intangible cultural heritage with Li Ziqi. In Chengdu alone, there are more than 400 accounts in Xiaohongshu, Kwai, Tiktok and Weibo that spare no effort to promote local traditional culture, covering food, martial arts, sports, opera, traditional handicrafts and other fields.
The rich historical and cultural heritage, unique folk culture, and diverse culinary culture of Chengdu provide a wealth of highly attractive materials for self media creation. During on-site visits, almost 100% of creators stated that Chengdu’s unique cultural environment provides fertile soil for the development of the self media industry.
Through the perspective of platform influencers, people have rediscovered the millennium of Chengdu and witnessed the millennium of China once again.
In the report of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, it was pointed out that “culture is the blood of the nation and the spiritual home of the people. To comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society and achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, it is necessary to promote the great development and prosperity of socialist culture
The spiritual wealth represented by traditional intangible cultural heritage is profoundly influencing our society and life. As an important central city in the western region, Chengdu, with its profound historical heritage and unique cultural charm, has also shown a vigorous and upward development trend in the dissemination of intangible cultural heritage through local self media.
It can be said that Ziqi spread intangible cultural heritage, and intangible cultural heritage also contributed to Li Ziqi’s success.
Previously slow, now still slow, but slow will not always be a disadvantage.
Slow can also be people’s choice.
Chengdu, known for its leisurely culture, has meticulously crafted intangible cultural heritage over the years. In the harmonious combination of a cup of tea, a bowl of lacquer, and a scoop of powder, this moment has become an eternal part of a thousand year old culture.
