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Jiwu Wuqie was born to a family of lacquerware craftsmen in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture， Sichuan province. The Yi lacquerware craft， which Jiwu learned as an apprentice to his father， has been handed down for 16 generations of his clan. He has since created 30 variations of its original forms. Jiwu bears the title of craft master of Sichuan Province. His works are sought after in the United States， Japan， Europe and Southeast Asian countries. Jiwu’s name was added to the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritors in 2009.
YI lacquerware embodies an ancient Chinese folk art that has been passed down over centuries. Its raw materials are wood， bamboo and leather， and the colors red， from cinnabar； yellow， from orpiment； and black. The tri-color culture of Yi lacquerware is apparent in modeling styles， patterns and a distinct aesthetic. Yi lacquer is imbued with rich regional characteristics as well as a strong ethos of humanism and totemism.
Apuruha is a small tranquil village north of Daliang Mountain in Xide County， Sichuan Province. Villagers live a simple life， starting work at sunrise and going home at sunset. The Jiwu clan that accounts for most of the village population has practiced the sideline craft of tableware for 16 generations， and is known for its artistry.
Father to Son
Jiwu Wuqie， now 60 years old， is still strong and sinewy.
At the age of six， Jiwu’s elder sister registered him at the local school. He thus became one of the first generation in his community to learn Mandarin Chinese. His school life， however， was short-lived. He left after the first semester because his grandmother needed his help raising pigs at home. Several years later， he began to learn the lacquerware craft and the Xiu decoration technique. The bond he formed with this craft grew stronger over the decades.
Black is the most honored color in the Yi people’s aesthetic consciousness， red the noblest， yellow the most beautiful. Yi lacquerware has a black background ornamented with red and yellow. The three colors are harmoniously arranged in a pattern that symbolizes the sun， the moon and stars， or other natural phenomena like rivers， forests and animals， ranging from poultry to wild beasts. Some reflect the daily lives of the Yi people， others regional characteristics， religious celebrations and totemism. All have strong visual impact. Being apprenticed to his father meant hard work for Jiwu， as he was a hard taskmaster and perfectionist. The crafting of lacquerware demands hard work as well as skill. A good lacquerware artisan is intelligent and sensitive， ingenious and artistic. The lacquerware making process also involves backbreaking labor. As an apprentice， Jiwu would cut wood and reap the sap from lacquer trees in the mountains.
Jiwu proved to be both talented and diligent. He would work for more than 10 hours a day. After a decade as an apprentice his lacquerware crafting skill outstripped that of his father. He was soon acknowledged as one of the best lacquer craftsmen in the village. In the meantime， he learned woodworking and bamboo weaving. The ability to make a fan for a bimo （high priest of the Yi people） was regarded as the accolade for a bamboo weaver. Wuqie mastered the skill in his teens.
Leaving the Village
As Jiwu Wuqie’s craftsmanship became more widely known， he was often offered work at the county’s ethnic tableware manufacturing factory. But his father did not want his only son to leave the family seat. It was not until 1982 that Wuqie finally became a regular worker at the factory. Before long， he was appointed director of the workshop responsible for lacquer work and ornamentation. It was then that the thousand-year-old traditional Yi lacquerware craft left the village.
“Before reform and opening-up， lacquerware in Xide was the reserve of the Jiwu clan， according to the custom of ‘passing on only to family members， and only to the son’s wife rather than to daughters，’” Jiwu said. As director of the workshop， he broke this rule by sharing his craftsmanship with others. This brought him promotion in 1987 to the position of deputy director of the factory. Jiwu used his authority to update the factory by improving the quality of its products and training larger numbers of skilled workers.
But Jiwu was not satisfied with this post. It made him feel bound by invisible ties that prevented him from giving full rein to his ideas.
In 1992， amid the gradual deepening of reforms to the Chinese economic system， Jiwu handed in his resignation and established an ethnic craft business with support from the local government. He thereafter set great store by the market as well as product quality. His hard work and skillful innovations built his reputation and brought in orders， and consequently good profits. Jiwu inherited just 16 types of lacquerware techniques from his father， half of which was in home tableware. Over 10 years， he expanded this range by more than 30 lines. Meanwhile， over the years Jiwu has been recruiting apprentices in Ninglang County， Xichang and Shaojue in the neighboring Yunnan Province through lectures， workshops and instruction he has given there. His wife and children are now also lacquerware masters.
Expansion Overseas
Burgeoning tourism has brought waves of visitors to Liangshan， whose lacquer work consists mainly of popular gift and souvenir items.
In 2008， Jiwu was invited to the fifth Santa Fe International Folk Art Market in New Mexico in the United States. Dressed in traditional Yi ethnic costume， he walked through the square to the opening ceremony as the flag bearer leading the Chinese delegation. In the exhibition hall， milling with more than 17，000 visitors， Jiwu displayed 285 of his personal works， two of which were snapped up by the Museum of International Folk Art.
In 2009， an application was made to the UN for Yi and other lacquerware under the broad heading of Chinese Lacquer Art to be awarded the status of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Jiwu’s prestige and his works have since become known internationally. His lacquerware items are in high demand and collected in more than 30 countries and regions， including the U.S.， Mexico， Canada， South Korea and Japan.
Dare to Innovate
Jiwu’s lacquerwork art and craft is apparent not only in tourist souvenirs but also in architecture.
As a habitat of the Yi people， Xide County urban planning features ethnic characteristics and style. Jiwu regards this as a golden opportunity to extend his works and those of his apprentices to buildings， lodges， eaves and frescos. In other regions of the province with Yi populations， such as Xichang and Puge， his paintings now hang in eaves and appear as frescos in ethnic restaurants and local homes.
Working on lacquerware occupies Jiwu’s whole life and embodies his personal values. Through it he meets collectors， experts and celebrities from all over the world. He hopes people of all ethnicities will develop an affinity with Yi lacquerware and its culture. He hopes to foster as many talented lacquerware craftspeople as possible during his lifetime.
YI lacquerware embodies an ancient Chinese folk art that has been passed down over centuries. Its raw materials are wood， bamboo and leather， and the colors red， from cinnabar； yellow， from orpiment； and black. The tri-color culture of Yi lacquerware is apparent in modeling styles， patterns and a distinct aesthetic. Yi lacquer is imbued with rich regional characteristics as well as a strong ethos of humanism and totemism.
Apuruha is a small tranquil village north of Daliang Mountain in Xide County， Sichuan Province. Villagers live a simple life， starting work at sunrise and going home at sunset. The Jiwu clan that accounts for most of the village population has practiced the sideline craft of tableware for 16 generations， and is known for its artistry.
Father to Son
Jiwu Wuqie， now 60 years old， is still strong and sinewy.
At the age of six， Jiwu’s elder sister registered him at the local school. He thus became one of the first generation in his community to learn Mandarin Chinese. His school life， however， was short-lived. He left after the first semester because his grandmother needed his help raising pigs at home. Several years later， he began to learn the lacquerware craft and the Xiu decoration technique. The bond he formed with this craft grew stronger over the decades.
Black is the most honored color in the Yi people’s aesthetic consciousness， red the noblest， yellow the most beautiful. Yi lacquerware has a black background ornamented with red and yellow. The three colors are harmoniously arranged in a pattern that symbolizes the sun， the moon and stars， or other natural phenomena like rivers， forests and animals， ranging from poultry to wild beasts. Some reflect the daily lives of the Yi people， others regional characteristics， religious celebrations and totemism. All have strong visual impact. Being apprenticed to his father meant hard work for Jiwu， as he was a hard taskmaster and perfectionist. The crafting of lacquerware demands hard work as well as skill. A good lacquerware artisan is intelligent and sensitive， ingenious and artistic. The lacquerware making process also involves backbreaking labor. As an apprentice， Jiwu would cut wood and reap the sap from lacquer trees in the mountains.
Jiwu proved to be both talented and diligent. He would work for more than 10 hours a day. After a decade as an apprentice his lacquerware crafting skill outstripped that of his father. He was soon acknowledged as one of the best lacquer craftsmen in the village. In the meantime， he learned woodworking and bamboo weaving. The ability to make a fan for a bimo （high priest of the Yi people） was regarded as the accolade for a bamboo weaver. Wuqie mastered the skill in his teens.
Leaving the Village
As Jiwu Wuqie’s craftsmanship became more widely known， he was often offered work at the county’s ethnic tableware manufacturing factory. But his father did not want his only son to leave the family seat. It was not until 1982 that Wuqie finally became a regular worker at the factory. Before long， he was appointed director of the workshop responsible for lacquer work and ornamentation. It was then that the thousand-year-old traditional Yi lacquerware craft left the village.
“Before reform and opening-up， lacquerware in Xide was the reserve of the Jiwu clan， according to the custom of ‘passing on only to family members， and only to the son’s wife rather than to daughters，’” Jiwu said. As director of the workshop， he broke this rule by sharing his craftsmanship with others. This brought him promotion in 1987 to the position of deputy director of the factory. Jiwu used his authority to update the factory by improving the quality of its products and training larger numbers of skilled workers.
But Jiwu was not satisfied with this post. It made him feel bound by invisible ties that prevented him from giving full rein to his ideas.
In 1992， amid the gradual deepening of reforms to the Chinese economic system， Jiwu handed in his resignation and established an ethnic craft business with support from the local government. He thereafter set great store by the market as well as product quality. His hard work and skillful innovations built his reputation and brought in orders， and consequently good profits. Jiwu inherited just 16 types of lacquerware techniques from his father， half of which was in home tableware. Over 10 years， he expanded this range by more than 30 lines. Meanwhile， over the years Jiwu has been recruiting apprentices in Ninglang County， Xichang and Shaojue in the neighboring Yunnan Province through lectures， workshops and instruction he has given there. His wife and children are now also lacquerware masters.
Expansion Overseas
Burgeoning tourism has brought waves of visitors to Liangshan， whose lacquer work consists mainly of popular gift and souvenir items.
In 2008， Jiwu was invited to the fifth Santa Fe International Folk Art Market in New Mexico in the United States. Dressed in traditional Yi ethnic costume， he walked through the square to the opening ceremony as the flag bearer leading the Chinese delegation. In the exhibition hall， milling with more than 17，000 visitors， Jiwu displayed 285 of his personal works， two of which were snapped up by the Museum of International Folk Art.
In 2009， an application was made to the UN for Yi and other lacquerware under the broad heading of Chinese Lacquer Art to be awarded the status of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Jiwu’s prestige and his works have since become known internationally. His lacquerware items are in high demand and collected in more than 30 countries and regions， including the U.S.， Mexico， Canada， South Korea and Japan.
Dare to Innovate
Jiwu’s lacquerwork art and craft is apparent not only in tourist souvenirs but also in architecture.
As a habitat of the Yi people， Xide County urban planning features ethnic characteristics and style. Jiwu regards this as a golden opportunity to extend his works and those of his apprentices to buildings， lodges， eaves and frescos. In other regions of the province with Yi populations， such as Xichang and Puge， his paintings now hang in eaves and appear as frescos in ethnic restaurants and local homes.
Working on lacquerware occupies Jiwu’s whole life and embodies his personal values. Through it he meets collectors， experts and celebrities from all over the world. He hopes people of all ethnicities will develop an affinity with Yi lacquerware and its culture. He hopes to foster as many talented lacquerware craftspeople as possible during his lifetime.