Do you know the four major "schools" of jade carving?

Jade cannot be made into a useful object without being carved. The carving of jade is an important factor in measuring the value of a piece of jade. In the jade industry, there are four major schools, namely Jieyang craftsmanship, Suyang craftsmanship, Ruili craftsmanship (Yunnan craftsmanship) and Sihui craftsmanship. They all have their own characteristics. Below I will introduce these four jade carving schools to you respectively.

Jieyang Engineering

Jieyang craftsmanship has a good reputation in the industry as "the best jade in the world is made by Jieyang craftsmanship". When it comes to Jieyang craftsmanship, it can be summed up in one word: "exquisite".

1. Exquisite

Jieyang workers will not sacrifice the parts for the sake of the whole. If there are defects when making large items, then make smaller items instead; if there are also defects when making small items, then make egg-shaped items instead. In short, Jieyang workers' near zero tolerance for defects has created a golden signboard for Jieyang workers.

2. Fine

The saying “I never tire of fine food and I never tire of delicate minced meat” is very suitable to describe Jieyang workers. No matter how small the item is, Jieyang people will never tire of carving it with teeth, hairs and water drops.

3. Strict

The Jieyang craftsmanship is very demanding. For example, when making a Buddha statue, no matter how good the water head of the material is, you have to dig on the back to adjust the water. If you compare carefully, you will find many similar details.

The shortcomings of Jieyang workers are also consistent with its characteristics. The processing specifications, like a standard operating procedure, not only keep the Jieyang processing industry as a whole at a very high level, but also restrict the hands and feet of jade carvers, making them too conservative and lack innovation.

Suyang Engineering

The characteristics of Su craftsmanship are its profound cultural heritage and very classical charm.

The words "long history" and "excellent" are the most appropriate to describe Suyang craftsmanship. Suyang craftsmanship generally uses relief on one side and yin-yang carving on the other side. The relief works have smooth lines, the knife is used steadily, and the depth of the lines is freely outlined, which can give the relief image a strong three-dimensional effect.

But Sugong also has its shortcomings. The first is to choose the material. Not all materials can produce stable results. Sometimes you will be surprised, and sometimes you will be shocked. Second, there is a lack of experience in jade processing. When the material itself has certain defects that need to be corrected, Su Gong may not be the best choice.

Ruili Engineering (Yunnan Engineering)

Thanks to the participation of a large number of carving masters from Fujian and Guangdong, abundant supply of raw materials and the influence of local customs and practices, Yunnan craftsmen have made great breakthroughs in carving form and content compared to traditional craftsmanship.

The Yunnan craftsmen have rich themes and unique styles. They are not limited to Guanyin Buddha in terms of figures, nor are they limited to flowers, birds, insects, herbs and auspicious animals in terms of decorative items, which greatly enriches the volume of jadeite.

Great processing: Thanks to the relatively low price and sufficient supply of raw materials, large pieces made in Yunnan are generally very stylish.

Natural and beautiful: This is the most important and distinctive feature of Yunnan University. During the processing, try to retain some of the original natural charm of the material, and incorporate the craftsmanship into the shape of the material itself. Instead of using labor to press the materials, find the best way to process them.

Disadvantages of Yunnan craftsmanship: In the process of pursuing the unity of work and materials, sometimes some small defects and flaws of the materials are intentionally or unintentionally ignored, and a little part will be sacrificed for the sake of the whole.

Four Associations

Sihui craftsmen have absorbed the stone carving techniques of the Fujian region and adopted the "small, fast and flexible" approach. The so-called "small" refers to the processing cost. Sihui workers take a cost-first approach. The goal is to achieve a similar look, but many details are saved as much as possible. The benefits of doing this are obvious. It saves a lot of time and labor costs, and later polishing is also easy to handle.

The so-called "fast" refers to fast processing speed. Sihui carving masters win by quantity, on the one hand to make money, on the other hand to help customers save processing costs, and also greatly shorten the cycle from raw materials to finished products of jade.

"Spirit" refers to the flexibility of processing and the agility of the finished product. Sihui craftsmen are not very picky about materials. No matter what kind of material it is, it can come alive after being manipulated by Sihui masters.

The shortcoming of Sihui craftsmanship is that in pursuit of speed, details are not properly handled, giving people a feeling of crude carving, and it is not suitable for carving good materials.

The above are the four major "schools" of jade carving. Which kind of carving do you like best?

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