Park the car and get out of the car to discuss the shooting plan. Zhang Yang contacted a few nuclear carving artists and wanted to go there to have a look, and then everyone would visit the market after they were done.

"Lao Liu, is Lao Liu here?"

Several people came to a store according to the address, specializing in nuclear carving, Zhang Yang also came for the first time, but Brother Zhang has been here a few times, and Lao Liu has also been on the show, which is an old friend.

"Hello, hello, it's Zhang Yang, right?" A man in his forties greeted everyone and said, "Please come in, I've been waiting for you for a long time." ”

A few people exchanged a few words, and they all sat down and chatted while drinking tea. This is the layout of a front store and a back factory, with a storefront in front and selling products. Behind is the factory, carving processing. Nuclear carving needs a small place, more than a dozen square meters, and a workbench is done.

"This is the first time to do a nuclear carving show, right? Last year, the big beauty of the white frost and Xiao Zhang came twice, and this year it was changed to publicize you. ”

Lao Liu is also familiar, he chats in a few words, they are all experts, there are many common topics, and everyone will be familiar with it after a while.

"It's still the same old thing this time, Lao Liu, you introduce some markets to the player audience, including price changes, process changes, and of course, deeper fraud or unspoken rules or something, so that novices have a bottom."

"Understood! Anyway, it's a matter of offending people, after finishing the show last year, many peers scolded me, saying that they ruined their business, and it seems that I still want to come out this year! ”

Lao Liu smiled, in fact, he knew that the merchants had it, why did they choose you to be on TV? Help you become famous? Either you have internal connections, or you dare to tell the truth and are not afraid of offending people!

"If it's all bad people who scold you! Serious business, honest business can't wait to expose more shady scenes! Let the market be healthy and do business together. ”

Wu Shixiang didn't hold back and answered directly. He is most annoyed by the jealousy of his so-called peers, and he has the ability to fight treasures! As long as you have good things in your hands, the player is not blind? Naturally, business is booming.

"Who are you? It looks familiar! ”

Lao Liu saw Wu Shixiang as soon as he entered the door, and he always wanted to see where he had seen it? As soon as I heard him speak, I suddenly shouted in a flash of inspiration: "You are Wu Shixiang!" Boss of Muyuanju! ”

Seeing Wu Shixiang nodding, Lao Liu was a little excited and said, "No wonder it looks familiar, it turned out to be you!" I really can't imagine that the owner of the dignified Mu Yuanju can come to my small shop, what an honor. ”

"Brother Liu doesn't need to be polite, you have a specialization in the art industry, you are an expert in nuclear carving, and it is indispensable to learn from you in the future." Wu Shixiang is very modest, he respects craftsmen, the kind of persistence that is not for fame and fortune, but only for art for decades.

Cao Ming and Yu Hongfei were very touched, they had seen Wu Shixiang's domineering and arrogant side, especially Yu Hongfei, and they had a deep understanding. But when I really got in touch, I found that he was modest, not arrogant, and especially respected true connoisseurs.

"Boss Wu is now a top expert in the entertainment circle, and the treasures of Mu Yuanju are all superb, just say it when you are useful to Lao Liu in the future!"

"Lao Liu, let's get down to business, how do you arrange it today?" Zhang Yang asked.

Lao Liu thought for a while, turned around and took out a large bag of raw seeds from the counter and said, "A few days ago, I just came in a batch of olive raw seeds, start with this?" ”

Zhang Yang prepared the camera, went directly to the topic, and began to introduce: "Today we and three experts came to Qingxian County to visit the craftsmen in the hometown of wood carving, this is Lao Liu, and also an old friend of our program, he will introduce you to the first step in the selection of nuclear carving - how to choose olive pits?"

Lao Liu took out several olive pits and said to the camera: "The olive pit is the pit of the olive plant, the plant shape is like an "olive" strip, the pit is fusiform, the two ends are blunt, reddish-brown, there are 6 ridges on it, the quality is hard, and it is not fragile. The seed coat is brownish-red, with white kernels inside, and oily feet. The main products are Fujian, in addition, Guangdong, Guangxi are also produced. ”

"According to the shape and size of the core, olive pits are generally divided into the following categories: single cores, also known as large cores, generally more than 2.5 centimeters in diameter, are more suitable for carving single works, so they are of high value. Small nuclei, usually only 1 cm in diameter or even smaller, are usually relatively rare in the market, so the price is generally high. ”

"Strange cores, nuclei with strange shapes, such as bergamot nuclei or polygonal nuclei, do not need to be processed, and they are very unique works of art in themselves. So it's expensive. The slender nucleus, mainly due to the narrow and long nucleus, is mostly used to carve the theme of nuclear boats. ”

"The round nucleus, about 2.5-2.8 cm long and 1.8-2.2 cm in diameter, has a relatively round shape and is very suitable for making a Luohan head. Ordinary three-flower core: This kind of core is relatively common, so it is also used most in nuclear carving, and can also be used to make zuò bead strings. ”

Lao Liu displayed each different shape of the original seed one by one, allowing players to understand the structure of the olive pit up close. Wu Shixiang also carefully observed on the side and learned from the masters.

"There are basically these kinds of raw seeds on the market, and the average player has finished products when they get their hands, whether it is a bracelet or a rosary that has been carved. However, veteran players still like to choose their own seeds, and then find craftsmen to carve according to different themes, which is more personalized. ”

"So how do we get the good quality seeds?"

"There are a few main points, first to see whether the color is uniform, whether there are flowers? Is the kernel thick? Is the nucleus skin thin? It is best to have thick meat and thin skin. Is the density high? If it is a nucleon that is not very dense, it will be easy to flower after oiling. Is it a monster core? Nuclei will be of high value if they are particularly large or extraordinarily small. If it is a bergamot core or a multi-flower core, it is even more rare.

Lao Liu took out a few original seeds and compared them to make the audience more intuitive, in fact, the kernels are almost the same. Density oiliness is the first, then the shape and size, and finally the skin color.

"You also said that the average player can only buy finished products in the market, especially bracelets, so how do we choose cost-effective babies?" Zhang Yang then guided the topic to continue.

"Before the nuclear carving market was booming, most of the nuclear carving works created by famous artists were old cores that had been shelved for more than 5 years. The reason why the fine products carved by the nuclear carving masters of the past generations can be handed down and strengthened after vicissitudes is because they choose high-quality old cores that have been shelved for many years. ”

Lao Liu knew that the key point was coming, since he was going to be on TV, he must break the inside story, and he did not shy away from saying: "The older generation of nuclear carving artists first put the purchased olive pits on the wooden frame separately according to the size and shape of the particles, and labeled them respectively. Screening is done every other year, and the nuclei that have been dried and cracked are removed, and then screened annually. ”

"After five years, about 30 percent of the inferior fission nuclei will be removed. The rest are all high-quality kernels with ripe and full grains, and the nuclear carving works carved with this kind of nucleus, and then played and maintained by players all year round, generally will not crack. This is just like the wood used to make zuò furniture, which can only be used after years of wind and sun, so that the furniture will not be deformed or cracked. ”

"In recent years, due to the increasingly active nuclear carving market and more and more buyers, most nuclear carving workshops have formed mass production, so it is impossible to use all old nuclear carving works. At present, the nuclear carvings supplied on the market are generally carved with new nuclei in the next year, and the new nuclei often contain a trace amount of water, and in the process of gradual drying, shrinkage, thus causing cracking. Therefore, preventing cracking of nuclear carvings has become a relatively prominent problem. ”

After speaking, he took out a few strings of freshly carved finished products from the counter, including Luohan, Ah Fu, and the God of Wealth. Compared with the original seeds, the color is darker, more uniform, and the oiliness is better.

"These are all machine carvings, right?" Yu Hongfei took a string, looked at it, and affirmed.

"Yes, these are all machine qì engraving, the computer sets the size and pattern, and when it starts, it is automatically formed. A string of arhats can be done in less than two hours, and the cost is very low. ”

Lao Liu nodded, to tell the truth, in his store, these goods are a string of dozens of yuan at most, and the best ones are not hundreds. They are all tourists, or beginners, and have no value to play.

"First of all, it is necessary to distinguish whether the work is hand-carved or machine-carved, and there is a big difference in value and price between the two. Hand-carved works embody the knowledge, wisdom and talent of craftsmen in terms of creativity, conception, layout, carving skills, etc., and are quite labor-intensive and time-consuming. A beautiful hand-carved work often requires a great deal of effort and labor on the part of the author. ”

"The works carved by the machine are like the parts produced in the factory, which are machine-cut and mass-operated, lacking creativity and agility. Therefore, the market price and collection value of the two are obviously different. ”

Lao Liu took out a string of handmade works and began to compare the differences: "To distinguish between hand-carved and machine-carved works, you need a certain amount of common sense and experience. The difference between the two is that the first-hand carved works obviously leave the carver's knife marks, while the machine-carved works are cut and polished by the machine, which is often smoother than the hand-carved works. ”

Second, the expressions of the characters, the depiction of facial features, eyebrows and beards, and the skin texture of the hand-carved works are natural and realistic, and the folds of the clothes are elegant and vivid. The same is true for animals and landscapes. However, the machine carving works cannot express these details, and the portrayal of the characters appears dull and stiff, lacking in vitality. ”

"Thirdly, hand-carving can complete works with particularly delicate carvings, such as nuclear boats and squirrel grapes, while machine qì cannot do such delicate carvings."

Wu Shixiang nodded while listening, this is a meat show, and there are not many nuclear carvings in the market. It is mainly shoddy, using machine workers to pretend to be manual, general workers to pretend to be famous workers, and small names to pretend to be master workers.

Don't underestimate this, it's incredibly profitable. Generally, the cost of currency machine qì labor is at least twenty or thirty, and a string of handmade works is at least a few hundred, and a good one is thousands.

And the famous workers are more expensive, at least tens of thousands, or limited editions. A year is scheduled to be dozens of strings, after all, people's energy is limited, and it is impossible to be as tireless as a machine.

Real masters and outsiders can't get it at all, and it's possible to book a string of them if they are very close. Masters are generally sixty or seventy years old, and there are four or five strings of fine products a year, with a very high market value and room for collection appreciation.

"Secondly, it is necessary to identify whether it is a famous work. This requires more viewing, more understanding, and more communication. Know which authors are currently famous. Most of the works of famous artists are creative, the layout of the works is reasonable, the proportions are accurate, the materials are exquisite, and the carving is fine. ”

"The name of the author is engraved on the beads of the work, and the price of the work of a master is much higher than that of an ordinary craftsman. Of course, you can't be completely superstitious about famous artists. At present, Suzhou, Hebei, Zhejiang and other places have also emerged a group of young nuclear carving authors, although the popularity is not as good as the famous artists, but their works are exquisite, atmospheric, vivid, realistic, creative, refreshing. ”

"Their level even surpasses that of some famous artists, which fully reflects their considerable cultural and artistic literacy and professional and exquisite carving skills."