Feat of Clay: Giving The Gift of Sculpture

For the December issue of the Beijinger, we sent our editors out to try their hand at traditional Chinese crafts. An excerpt of their experiences was featured in the magazine. The following is the full version of their story.

Do you remember the last time you played with mud? No need to answer. It’s time to get back into it.

There’s a small workshop, in a quiet hutong near Ping’anli, where you can make clay sculptures. In the few hours I spent there, I rediscovered the deep satisfaction of making something with your own hands.

That satisfaction is rooted in simplicity. Clay sculpture is actually quite easy as long as you don’t put pressure on yourself to create something phenomenal. I showed up at the workshop and after looking at all the different moulds available, decided to make a Tuerye, the Rabbit God of Beijing folklore. The young artist who owns the workshop prepared the clay, some simple wood tools for shaping the sculpture and a warm cup of tea. She then showed me how to set the right amount of clay into the mould and how to carve some tiny dents on the edge to ensure that the two halves would stick to each other perfectly.

I didn’t realize how crucial the first step was until I eased the sculpture out of the mould. My muddy little Tuerye didn’t come out so smooth – he had quite a few cracks on his body. (If I had the chance to do it again, I would give that clay a better push into the mould.) Consequently, I had to spend half an hour with a wooden knife fixing the cracks and trimming the extra clay off the edges. Fortunately, soothing classical music was playing on the online radio channel that the young artist was listening to. As I worked, I thought about what a simple but heartfelt gift this little figurine would be.

The clay figurine needed a few days to dry before it could be painted. When I showed up at the workshop the second time, a warm cup of tea was waiting for me, along with a bunch of Chinese brush pens and small paintbrushes. Since this was my own handiwork, I wasn’t obligated to paint my Rabbit God in the usual boring colors. But I still decided to give it a relatively traditional look, while other people in the workshop made their poor Tuerye “wear” Spider Man costumes.

Looking at the finished piece, I thought about how happy I would feel if someone gave me a gift like that. And then I realized I didn’t want to give it up. So I made a present of it to myself.

Price and venue: RMB 60/two sessions, Shuiguiqi Traditional Cultural Workshop

The rewards of persevering: With some basic drawing practice, suitable paintbrushes and some imagination, anyone can make a decent clay figurine in less than three hours. If you want to create your own design, you’ll need to take professional classes.

Click here to see the December issue of the Beijinger in full.

Photos: Judy Zhou