Quick Answer: What Is Pingyao Polished Lacquerware?
Pingyao polished lacquerware (平遥推光漆器, Píngyáo tuīguāng qīqì) is a lacquer tradition from Pingyao in Shanxi, northern China. Its smooth, reflective surfaces come from preparing a core, building up layers of natural lacquer and polishing the finish. Gold painting, colored designs and inlay appear on pieces such as boxes, cabinets and screens.[1][2]
- Core: A prepared wood form gives many pieces their shape.[1]
- Coatings: A leveled ground supports the lacquer layers and decoration.[1][2]
- Finish: Gradual polishing, including work with the palm, brings up the gloss.[1][2]
The finish and decoration are distinct parts of the work. One object can combine a polished ground with a raised or inlaid design.[1][2]
A highlight across the lid of a lacquer box can reveal an even surface, while the edge of the lid reveals the shape of the object underneath. The sheen, shape and decoration each result from different workshop decisions.[1][2]
From Wood Core to Lacquer Surface
A wooden core establishes the shape of a box, cabinet or screen. The surface is prepared before the lacquer goes on. Documented Pingyao workshop methods include covering wood with fabric and applying a ground, a layer used to level and prepare the surface. Different ground mixtures call for different supports, so the material listed for a particular object matters.[1][2]
The coating traditionally uses processed natural lacquer known as dàqī (大漆, dàqī). Makers apply and cure coats in a designated drying room. A top coat can use lacquer prepared with tung oil. The ground and the coatings build a surface suited to painting or polishing, while the core carries the overall shape.[1]
Compare the large flat face of a screen with the corners of a box. On a cabinet, the finish runs across broad panels as well as edges and joints. A small decorated lid concentrates attention in one plane. The different forms give the same set of techniques different jobs.[1]
What Hand Polishing Changes
Tuiguang (推光, tuīguāng) means bringing up the shine by rubbing and polishing. A workshop account from 2019 records a maker using progressively finer means to smooth a lacquer painting, then working the surface with the palm. The hand is the final tool in an already prepared sequence.[1][2]
Polishing reduces irregularities in the outer surface so that reflections appear more even. Light reflected from a broad, level area can travel across it with few interruptions. Where the design rises from the ground, it catches light along different edges. A smooth field and a raised ornament can therefore contribute to the appearance in separate ways.[1][2]
Paint, Gold and Inlay
Pingyao makers decorate lacquer with painted color and gold detailing. Documented workshops also use eggshell inlay and several raised or recessed techniques. Gold can trace the outline of a motif or define an area within a painted scene. Pale fragments of eggshell can make a broken, mosaic-like surface. Each material adds a different kind of detail to the finished piece.[1][2]
A dark background and gold image can appear in more than one place. Yangzhou lacquerware provides a regional comparison for lacquer decoration, while Xiamen lacquer thread sculpture focuses on a distinct way of making raised lines. On a Pingyao piece, look first at where the color or ornament sits in relation to the surface, then read the maker or catalogue attribution.[1]
How the Craft Continues in Pingyao
The Pingyao lacquerware factory helped bring teaching and production together. Xue Shengjin entered it in 1958 and learned from the lacquer artisan Qiao Quanyu. He later taught others and worked on recovering a raised-decoration method. Liang Zhongxiu trained in the factory’s painting shop under Xue and experimented with adapting effects from oil painting and watercolor to lacquer decoration.[1][3][4]
Pingyao’s lacquer-finishing practice entered China’s first national list of representative intangible heritage in 2006. The designation covers the knowledge and skills involved in coating, decorating and finishing lacquerware. The guide to Chinese intangible cultural heritage explains how such national entries are made.[1]
FAQs About Pingyao Polished Lacquerware
What does tuiguang mean?
It refers to polishing the prepared lacquer surface to develop gloss. Traditional Pingyao finishing can include rubbing with the palm after earlier smoothing stages.[1][2]
Can polished lacquerware have a raised design?
Yes. Pingyao workshops use both flat painted decoration and techniques that build up relief. The shine of a finished area and the height of a motif are separate features.[1][2][3]
Is the craft part of the UNESCO World Heritage listing?
China’s 2006 national entry covers the lacquer-finishing practice. The UNESCO World Heritage property is the Ancient City of Ping Yao and its built heritage.[1][5]
Источники
[1] China Intangible Cultural Heritage Digital Museum. Pingyao Polished Lacquerware Finishing Techniques
[2] China Culture Daily. Pingyao Polished Lacquerware in the Workshop
[3] China Intangible Cultural Heritage Digital Museum. Xue Shengjin
[4] China Intangible Cultural Heritage Digital Museum. Liang Zhongxiu
[5] UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Ancient City of Ping Yao