Jointly sponsored by CAFA and the Party Committee and Government of Jianchuan County in Dali, Yunnan Province, “Magical Craftworks of the Western Yunnan – Dali in Yunnan · Jianchuan Wood Carving Art Exhibition” opened at the Teaching Hall of CAFA on the morning of March 7, 2014, which showcases more than 100 pieces of selected wood carvings from Western Yunnan.

Jianchuan County is located in the Western Frontier of Yunnan, where most of the resident population are Bai Nationality. Jianchuan wood carving has a long history, wooden tools and architectural wooden remnants used 5300 years ago were unearthed in “Jianchuan Entrance to Sea”, these are regarded as the ancient origin of Jianchuan wood carving; the first batch of national protection units of key cultural relics “Jianchuan Shizhongshan Grottoes” constitutes stone carvings imitating the wooden architecture and elegant chairs with dragon patterns, reflecting the mature woodcarving technique of Jianchuan in Tang and Song Dynasties; starting from Ming and Qing Dynasties to the republic of China, Jianchuan wood engraving was famous in Sichuan and Guizhou and nearly all architectural woodcarvings of Yunnan Province were produced by Jianchuan carpenters.

More than 100 items of wood carving are on display, including wood carvings of Ming and Qing Dynasties, wood carvings for buildings, useful items, decoration and furnishings, showcase the exquisite craft of Jianchuan wood carving. In addition, the exhibition showcases a large number of images, so that the audience can comprehend the development history of Jianchuan wood carving, and manufacturing process, etc. A wood carving carpenter on-site makes wood carvings, so the audience can understand the process of making a Jianchuan wood carving. At the same time, “Carving a Dragon”, the film about the tale of a Jianchuan carpenter is screened at the exhibition hall, “Carving a Dragon” was the first animation film made by Shanghai Animation Film Studio in 1959, and it won the “Second Prize” of Bucharest International Film Festival in 1960.

In cooperation with the People’s Government of Jianchuan, CAFA holds this exhibition in order to fully display the history, present situation and the craft of Jianchuan woodcarving, and hopes that it will appeal to more people who want to learn about Dali Jianchuan, and Jianchuan wood carving, and pass on and carry forward the national intangible cultural heritage. CAFA has focused on the status quo of intangible cultural heritage in the country, and established the Department of Intangible Cultural Heritage, serving as the academic frontier for the research of intangible cultural heritage in our country. CAFA is also one of the universities arranged by the Ministry of Education to support the learning of the people in the mountains along the border of Western Yunnan, the exhibition reveals that it is the implementation of the Ministry of Education that is helping to speed up the educational reform and development of Western Yunnan, and is a supportive project for 5 years, continuing until 2017, while the two parts will continue the cooperation on building a teaching practice base, and cultural exchange platform.

The exhibition will last until March 12.

Text and photo by Zhang Wenzhi, translated by Chen Peihua and edited by Sue/CAFA ART INFO.