Poyang county in east China's Jiangxi Province is striving to invite investment from across the country to develop local lacquer wares, in an effort to help the centuries-old handicraft regain its glory and fame rather than let it die out in modern society.

Lacquer wares, along with porcelain and silk, are distinguished as the three typical representatives of Chinese handicrafts.

Dating back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279 A.D.), the lacquer works in Poyang are quite distinct from others produced in the country, such as in southwest Sichuan and Guizhou provinces and eastern Fujian Province.

Grass cloth, rather than wood, plaster, porcelain and brass, issued for making the mould for Poyang lacquer wares, making them weigh much less than similar artworks using other materials for frame and shape, said 81-year-old Ding Jinbao, a local who started to work as a lacquerer half a century ago.

A lacquered vase made of grass cloth only weighs half of that made of wood and porcelain, illustrated Ding.

Elaborate and complicated craftsmanship make it a time-consuming task to finish each masterpiece of Poyang lacquer, with some taking several and even dozens of years, but they add delicacy, fineness and value to the artworks, added Ding.

As early as in 1929, the Poyang lacquer wares won the golden award at the Panama International Fair.

The craftworks have been highly valued after gaining acclaim from across the country ever since the founding of New China in 1949.

The first batch of handicrafts produced in 1959 by the Poyang Lacquer Plant built up the artworks' reputation nationwide after being displayed at a national exhibition in Beijing. Ding was once head of the lacquering department in the plant.

Thus, Poyang lacquer, along with porcelains made in Jingdezhen, known as China's porcelain capital in Jiangxi Province, were the only two representative artworks of the province chosen in 1961 to be articles used for the first decoration of the Great Hall of the People, situated in the center of Beijing.

On the west of the Tian'anmen Square, the majestic hall is known as the seat of China's highest legislative body and is where the most important political and diplomatic activities are held.

Poyang technicians were proud of being invited twice to join the ornamentation of the sub-hall of Jiangxi Province in the Great Hall of the People with a big lacquered pendant vase and a huge lacquered screen.

The screen, four meters long and two meters high, features a panoramic view of the province's Jinggang mountains, the first base area of the Communist-led revolution in the country.

Poyang lacquer wares have since gained rising international fame and they were exported to a number of countries in Eastern Europe and America.

While the county of Poyang was immersed in the achievements of the thriving lacquer businesses, an accidental fire at the Poyang Lacquer Plant in 1995 dashed the hope of locals for further development of the artworks.

Four workshops, covering 3,000 sq m, were all burnt down, and all facilities, tools and materials were burnt into ashes in the raging and unmerciful blaze.

The plant, with an annual production value beyond 2 million yuan (nearly US$241,000), crumbled to dust in the ravage, and its more than 200 craftspeople deserted the plant and pursued other livelihoods.

The plant never recovered its vitality.

The relics of the plant disappointed those who were sent from Beijing in 1997 to invite craftsmen to join the third decoration efforts of the Great Hall of the People.

Ding Jinbao experienced the ups and downs of the local lacquer businesses, and has embraced a strong desire to help the traditional handicraft rescale its summit and thus prevent it back from dying out in modern society.

Four generations of Ding's family have served as lacquerers. Ding is the second-generation successor.

On hearing that a local, Chen Changshou, intended to set up a lacquer plant with 200,000 yuan (US$24,000), Ding, together with his fellow colleagues, who are aged at least 70, pledged all-out dedication to the new plant during their remaining years.

But it proved to be tough to reactivate the business and their enthusiasm and expectations were dampened.

Shortage of investment in the plant limited its production, to say nothing of lacquering some elaborate works. The factory was forced to cancel some big orders.

To make things worse, the older elites could not even recruit anybody to apprentice to them to carry forward the handiwork.

The long production cycle and slower economic returns keep lacquer work far from satisfying youngsters, who are in pursuit of high-income professions, said Chen.

Ding has to accept the reality as his grandnephew also discarded his 17-year workmanship and is now self-employed in indoor decoration businesses.

Ding Xianhui cited that his grand-uncle has spent his whole life on lacquer work and some delicate pieces of work even demand life-long efforts, so he could not afford such a long time.

"Indoor decoration earns me more money, more easily and quickly," young Ding added.

The county, situated around the Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, is continuing its efforts to introduce investment for the traditional handiworks, though no deals have yet been nailed down so far in discussions with business people from other provinces in the country.
 
(Xinhua News Agency June 8, 2004)