Sugong, Jieyanggong and Sihuigong are common jade crafts. What are the differences between them?

Friends who like jade may hear the owner introduce this as Jieyang craftsmanship when buying jade, or hear others say this is not Jieyang craftsmanship but Sihui craftsmanship, etc. Then friends who have not been in contact with jade for a long time may be a little confused. What do Jieyang craftsmanship and Sihui craftsmanship mean?

In fact, Jieyang craftsmanship and Sihui craftsmanship refer to the techniques of jade carving. Together with Su craftsmanship and Ruili craftsmanship, they are collectively known as the four major jade carving techniques. However, today I am only going to share with you the Jieyang workers, Sihui workers and Su workers who are more common in the Guangzhou market.

Let’s talk about Jieyang craftsmanship first. Many friends who like jade must have heard of Jieyang craftsmanship to some extent, because Jieyang craftsmanship is very famous in the industry. 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, many people in the industry will say that Jieyang craftsmanship is so exquisite that it is like obsessive-compulsive disorder in the craft.

The biggest feature of Jieyang craftsmanship is that it is extremely picky about materials. For example, when our craftsmen get a piece of material with defects, they will try to avoid it and use design and color to turn the defects into a beautiful finished product. For example, the common landscape signs we see sometimes have crack avoidance carvings on the back, but this is impossible with Jieyang craftsmen. The craftsmen of Jieyang will definitely cut off the defective parts directly.

For example, a raw stone could originally be used to make a large Guanyin, but a Jieyang craftsman discovered a crack and cut it directly to make a smaller companion. However, if another defect is discovered, he will continue to cut away the defect, even if only a tiny bit is left to make a small water drop, the Jieyang craftsman will definitely be strict and make sure the material is flawless first. Therefore, we usually see that the finished jade products made by Jieyang craftsmen have very clean bases.

Let’s take a landscape sign as an analogy. If there is a touch of beautiful color on the landscape, it is basically not made by Jieyang, because the craftsman from Jieyang will definitely regard this touch of beautiful color as a flaw and dig it out! They are so obsessive about the material, it has to be flawless. Therefore, some people believe that although Jieyang craftsmanship is exquisite, it is too exquisite and lacks charm and spirit. Because of the excessive pursuit of perfection, some of the natural charm of jade is lost.

Next, let’s talk about Sihui craftsmanship. Sihui craftsmanship has absorbed the stone carving techniques of the Fujian region, taking the route of “small, fast and flexible”, and taking cost as the priority. Compared with the Jieyang workers' obsessive principle of continuous improvement, Sihui workers can be said to be the least picky about materials. No matter what kind of materials, Sihui craftsmen will make them into finished products. It can be said that Jieyang workers focus on quality, while Sihui workers focus on quantity.

To give an analogy, if a master works in Jieyang, it may take him ten days to produce one finished product, but if he works in Sihui, he can produce ten finished products in one day. Therefore, Sihui workers occupy a large proportion in the industry because of their fast delivery and not being picky about materials. But it doesn't mean that the things made by Sihui craftsmanship are necessarily bad. Although it pursues quantity, there are many masters in Sihui craftsmanship who are very flexible in their techniques and can make a variety of materials with different flavors, which is something that Jieyang craftsmanship does not have.

Finally, let me talk about Su Gong, because I personally like Su Gong very much. In fact, Su craftsmanship is more common in Hetian jade carvings, and relatively less common in jadeite. The biggest feature of Su craftsmanship is its meaning, which is very artistic. If I come across a finished jade product carved by Su Gong, I can only say that once you see Su Gong, you will be ruined for the rest of your life. The jadeite carved by Su craftsmen, especially the shallow relief technique, makes the artistic conception of jadeite endless and beautiful. It makes people feel that carving can be so light and effortless, and that one can taste the rich flavor and Zen under the light lines.

Looking back at these three crafts, they actually have distinct characteristics. The "abnormal" refinement of Jieyang craftsmanship is like the exquisitely shaped delicacies served at high-end banquets. The Sihui workers are "flexible" and "teach students in accordance with their aptitude", like home-cooked dishes full of the flavor of life. Su craftsmanship, on the other hand, is about artistic conception, using the shallowest carvings to outline the deepest realm, just like the sake brewed in bamboo tubes deep in the mountains, which is full of fragrance and leaves people with endless aftertaste.

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