Traceability and evolution: from “Prime Minister of Sugar” to national intangible cultural heritage
The folk art sugar painting, which has the characteristics of using sugar as ink and using a spoon as a pen, is classified into a category that belongs to the intersection of traditional art and handicrafts in the broader academic qualitative and intangible cultural heritage list. The clues of its historical development can be traced. The "Sugar Prime Minister" existed in the rituals used for sacrifices in the Ming Dynasty, which was a long time ago. According to the situation described in the "Jianhu Supplement" recorded by Chu people in the Qing Dynasty, it is known that the custom that existed in the Ming Dynasty was to worship the gods in the new era. "Melting the icing sugar", and printing and casting in a specific way to form animals and figures, which were used as gifts during the sacrificial period. The figures printed and cast were described as "grand robes and robes", and their appearance and shape resembled that of civil servants and military generals, so the people at that time jokingly called them " "Prime Minister of Sugar", in this specific period, sugar products were still within the category of items provided during sacrifices. The shapes they were made and shaped needed to comply with the requirements of serving religious etiquette, and had very clear functions reflected in folk beliefs.
During the Qing Dynasty, the urban economy continued to develop, and citizen culture also developed. Sugar paintings slowly moved from sacred altars to secular streets. Its themes broke the original image of gods and widely absorbed auspicious patterns such as dragons, phoenixes, fish, monkeys, flowers and birds. , has become a favorite festival symbol and street art among the people. In "Jianhu Supplementary Collection", there are poems such as "Su Qin Lu me is sweet, Lin Fu is the sweetheart of the people", which not only mocks the world, but also confirms the popularity of sugar paintings in banquet occasions. At this time, the sugar painting technique achieved a key transformation from "printing" to "drawing", and folk names such as "sugar pourer" and "sugar cake pourer" were established, indicating its maturity as an independent art form. Around 2010, sugar painting art was successfully included in the list of national intangible cultural heritage representative projects due to its profound historical accumulation and unique artistic value. Its skill inheritance and cultural identity have been authoritatively recognized at the national level.
The essence of craftsmanship: the dual dimensions of plane drawing and three-dimensional configuration
Among the many styles of sugar painting, flat sugar painting is the most widely spread. Artists engaged in sugar painting creation will use copper spoons as pens, turn marble slabs into paper, and use sugar syrup that has been fully boiled to the appropriate temperature to carry out flow painting work. In terms of process, its lines are particularly particular about "one stroke forming", and the outline of fine patterns such as dragon scales, phoenix feathers, etc. must be completed with ups and downs, pauses and turns. The entire drawing process does not tolerate even the slightest hesitation and the slightest modification. This creation fully demonstrates the extremely exquisite craftsmanship and extremely superb mental modeling skills of those artists who are rooted in the folk.
Compared with flat painting, three-dimensional sugar painting represents a higher level of this skill. Its production process incorporates sculptural thinking and architectural mechanics principles. When making a traditional "flower basket" shape, the artist must first cast the base component, and then control the temperature and flow rate of the sugar syrup. , taking advantage of the hot time to pull out the shape of the basket body and basket beams. The whole process relies entirely on feel and experience, and relies on the physical reaction changes of the sugar during the cooling period to glue and assemble the two-dimensional "component contents" to construct an art work in the three-dimensional space. Such an improvement from two-dimensional to three-dimensional techniques not only requires artists to have superb painting skills, but also to master the comprehensive knowledge of materials science, thermodynamics and structural aesthetics. As a result, sugar paintings have transformed from street snacks into precious crafts that can be viewed and eaten.
Cultural space and inheritance genealogy: the contemporary revitalization of street art
Sugar painting, as an "authentic folk painting type" and a "distinctive street art", has long been based on places called "folk cultural spaces" such as temple fairs, markets, and parks. Those places are extremely mobile, and together they constitute a specific place where sugar painting art can be spread and traded. Artists, with mobile stalls as the core, have formed a living inheritance model that integrates performance, production, and sales. There is such a skill inheritance model. The applause given by the audience as they watch, and the expectant gazes of the children, combine to form an inseparable aesthetic acceptance link in the art of sugar painting.
After the advent of the new century, the intangible cultural heritage protection system has been established and deepened, and the inheritance and development paths of sugar paintings have shown a diversified trend. On the one hand, the older generation of artists upholds the essence of traditional skills and maintains the existence of the genre through mentoring and apprenticeship; on the other hand, sugar painting skills have entered campus classrooms, cultural and creative parks, and museum exhibition halls, and its cultural identity has achieved a wonderful transformation from "street livelihood crafts" to "national cultural symbols." In the academic world, the research on its aesthetic value is developing in depth day by day. At the same time, the exploration of its historical documentary value is also constantly advancing, and people regard it as a specimen with vivid vitality that can interpret the aesthetic psychology of Chinese folk and the changes in folk customs.
In the contemporary context, the so-called contemporary activation value of sugar painting art, as expressed in the specific words you provided, has become increasingly apparent. It is not only a sweet memory of the past that can be savored, but also a tangible carrier of the spirit of traditional Chinese craftsmanship and the clever wisdom of folk creation. How to achieve innovation in subject matter and improvement of materials while maintaining the prerequisite of traditional core skills, and how to expand its living space under the background of cultural and tourism integration have become issues that urgently need to be discussed in depth in the current intangible cultural heritage protection work. Only by adhering to the fundamentals of the skill and activating it to adapt to the needs of the times can this superb skill of "sugar pouring" become more fresh and full of vitality over a long period of time in the rapid and unusual wave of modernization, and continue to convey the tenderness and tenderness unique to the people within the Bashan Shushui region and the confidence given by the unique culture.
Comments NOTHING