Baoding 34-year-old Wu Haidong is a leather carver and the inheritor of intangible cultural heritage of Lianchi District. In 2018, Wu Haidong began to create pet-themed leather carvings. He carved the cowhide according to the appearance of the deceased pet and made it into tags, leather bags, etc., and put the pet's hair, teeth and other "relics" in it, so that they could look like this. Form continues to accompany the owner.
html Over the past 2004 years, he has used leather carving techniques to "re-engrave" thousands of deceased pets.
From the time I was exposed to the art
I fell in love with leather carving after graduating from college.
From the age of four or five, Wu Haidong began to be exposed to art and chose graphic design in college. After graduating from college, Wu Haidong tried wood carving, jade carving, etc. until he came into contact with leather carving and was deeply attracted.
"When I first saw the leather carving works, I was very surprised. I couldn't imagine how they were made, and I really wanted to learn them." After that, Wu Haidong went to apprentices with teachers everywhere, learning from the strengths of many masters, and studying the craft of leather carving.
Leather carving is a carving process that uses leather as the material. Natural leather that is tough and not easily deformed is generally used for carving and dyeing. All the production processes are done on hand, and it is not easy to learn.
At the beginning of his studies, Wu Haidong practiced for fifteen or six hours every day. His hands had thick calluses and wounds of various sizes, but he never thought of giving up. When it comes to the reason for persistence, Wu Haidong's answer is simple: "Because I like it, so I persist."
From accident to persistence
"Re-engraving" a deceased pet that heals its owner
Traditional leather carving styles are generally based on Tang grass patterns, which are generous and solemn. But quite satisfactory. By chance, Wu Haidong tried to create pet-themed leather sculptures for the first time.
At that time, a netizen who had seen Wu Haidong's leather sculptures contacted him and asked him if he could create a leather sculpture based on the look of his own teddy dog. Because the teddy dog stayed with me for many years and later passed away at an old age, netizens wanted to keep a souvenir. After Wu Haidong agreed, he "reproduced" the leather sculpture of the Teddy dog based on the photos sent to him by netizens. The Teddy dog had a "bright smile" and was very cute. After
received the work, netizens called Wu Haidong excitedly: "It's so similar, my Teddy is back!"
's creation touched Wu Haidong a lot: "For many people, pets are They are not just animals, but also their own family members. The stories between them are real and heart-warming. How wonderful it is to be able to help them continue to accompany and heal their owners in another way after the pets leave."
In this way, Wu Haidong began to work hard on creating pet-themed leather sculptures, such as cats, dogs, rabbits... In four years, he insisted on creating nearly 3,000 such leather sculptures.
"It takes 3 to 5 days to make a piece of work. You also need to communicate with customers repeatedly in the early stage to understand the story between the customer and the pet, experience the relationship between them, and carefully 'replicate' the pet." Wu Haidong said, in this way The works created will make customers feel more intimate, as their pets have not left.
From Achievements to Insights
Young heirs of intangible cultural heritage have a heavy burden
Almost every day, Wu Haidong shares the process of creating leather sculptures and the touching stories behind them online. In his busy work, Wu Haidong has gained a full sense of accomplishment, "I think the greatest significance of this job is to help others preserve beautiful things forever."
Now, Wu Haidong has established his own studio, which is ten years old. Several people form a team, and the demand for their works exceeds supply. Because of their increasing popularity, their works have not only spread across the country, but also abroad, and have won praises from many foreign netizens.
The reporter learned that compared to other traditional handicrafts, leather carving is relatively unpopular, and not many people are interested in it and can persist in doing it.
"By sharing online, I want more people to pay attention to this traditional skill, and at least let everyone know about the existence of leather carving." As his skills become more and more mature, as a young inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, Wu Haidong has I have more insights and feel that the burden on myself is not small.
"On the one hand, we need to inherit and innovate this intangible cultural heritage skill, and on the other hand, we want more people to understand and like leather carving. Such a good skill, I really can't bear to let it decline." Wu Haidong said.
■ Text/Hebei Youth Daily reporter Wang Chunrui
■Photo provided/Wu Haidong
■Editor/Yang Xuyan
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