A long and narrow carving knife swims flexibly on the rough coconut shell, and butterflies flutter around the rows of hollowed-out dots; When the lamp is plugged into the coconut shell, the beams of light and shadow cast will change into different patterns. Although this is an unfinished coconut carved lampshade, people are still impressed by Wu Mingju's ingenious design and skills.

In August this year, Wu Mingju walked into the Shanghai World Expo Baosteel Grand Stage Coconut Carving Project Learning Area, and was surrounded by tourists, who either stopped to watch and take pictures, or under the guidance of Wu Mingju, they personally experienced a "coconut carving addiction".

Walking into Wu Mingju's coconut carving world, you will find that obsession is also a kind of happiness.

Wu Mingju, 35 years old this year, speaks softly and slightly shyly, looking like a big boy in his twenties. When he picked up the carving knife and carved on the coconut shell, the calm and concentration on his face made people truly believe that he had fallen in love with coconut carving for nearly 20 years.

Wu Mingju's hometown Baoming Village is located in Longqiao Town, Yangshan District, Haikou City, and Fudao Village, a famous coconut carving village in Hainan in the last century, is also here. In the first year of junior high school, Wu Mingju, who loved carving since childhood, went to Fudao Village to play, and happened to see the coconut carving artwork created by the old artist Wen Shu in the village, and was immediately fascinated and had the idea of learning from a teacher.

Historically, Hainan coconut carving was once known as the "Tiannan tribute", all the way north into the imperial city palace wall. In the past, prosperity became a dream, and now the only old artist in Fudao Village who knows a full set of coconut carving skills is left to narrate.

He has always wanted to pass on this ancestral craft to young people, but no young man in the village is willing to learn from him, not even his own son, who would rather do parts processing for others than touch the profound coconut carving process. At a moment's notice, 16-year-old Wu Mingju became the last apprentice of Wen Chuan, and the old man taught him a full set of coconut carving skills without reservation.

Under the guidance of the old man, the very talented Wu Mingju made rapid progress. In order to enrich his education, Wu Mingju also taught himself painting, music and other types of sculpture, including clay sculpture, wood carving, fiberglass sculpture, etc.

"This child has a tenacity to study art, and his understanding of art is extremely high, and inconspicuous materials such as clay, wood, coconut shell, and glass fiber reinforced plastic have reached his hands, and once they are carved, they have become exquisite carving works." It is rumored that the old man kept boasting.

Unlike his teachers, Wu Mingju likes to innovate and seek curiosity, and often integrates modern art into traditional coconut carving creations, or combines coconut carvings with other materials. He once created a coconut carved vase more than 1 foot high, which was made of triangular coconut shells piece by piece, and the vase was inlaid with a dancing human figure with shells, which was praised by the old man in the text. "Every now and then, my master always nods his head in approval, saying that it's actually not bad to improve it like this." Wu Mingju said.

"Although there are many types of learning, my favorite is coconut carving, the material of coconut shells is delicate and light, which is most suitable for fine carving, which is very consistent with my personality." Wu Mingju said, "But the tools of coconut carving are very simple, basically carving knives of different sizes, which need considerable strength to carve hard coconut shells, at this time, you need to brush away the irritability, quietly sink, a month, two months or even longer to carve a good work." ”

When creating a shell-inlaid dancing humanoid coconut sculpture, Wu Mingju once encountered a small setback, "Everything is difficult at the beginning, and when the work created with great effort was rejected by the market, I also thought about giving up and changing careers." But the persuasion of my friends and my love for coconut carving finally made me persist until now. ”

However, this "persistence" is full of hardships. Wu Mingju recalled that there was a time when he lived on the verge of poverty for several years. At that time, the market was flooded with a large number of mechanical coconut carving handicrafts, and the coconut carving artwork was not "cold", Wu Mingju was unwilling to make clay sculptures and wood carvings for people, so he simply stayed at home and studied coconut carving skills alone, and several times the family almost couldn't open the pot, "Even now, the salary of being asked to do a day of wood carving is still far higher than that of coconut carving, but I still can't give up coconut carving." ”

On the 20th, Wu Mingju won the honorary title of "Hainan Folk Art Master" in the selection and display of Hainan folk arts and crafts production jointly organized by the Propaganda Department of the Provincial Party Committee, the Provincial Department of Culture and Sports, the Hainan Daily Newspaper Group, and the Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

"The reason why high-end and exquisite coconut carving handicrafts have lost the market is mainly due to the inability to keep up with innovation, rather than the impact of computer design and mechanized processing." Wu Mingju analyzed that if the traditional craft of coconut carving cannot be developed and innovated in combination with the market, it will definitely be eliminated by the market.

The rise of new coconut art in recent years is precisely because of the development of a number of cheap and high-quality products such as jewelry and clothing accessories. However, the new coconut art also has shortcomings such as low technical content and market price reduction. The best way is to inherit and carry forward the traditional craftsmanship on the one hand, and on the other hand to enhance the technical content of the new coconut art, so as to enhance the core competitiveness, "the material can be diverse, the pattern can be complex, the color can change, and the function can be practical, but the real coconut carving still reflects the traditional skills and traditional style." ”

In Longqiao Town, coconut carving is regarded as a symbol of happiness and auspiciousness. Whenever there is a wedding or an auspicious day for the New Year, the locals always put out a pair of sugar jars made of coconut shells, although not necessarily elaborately carved, but the round and full coconut shells represent festive wishes.

Walking in the volcanic area of northern Qiongbei, I am often moved by the pictures of rural life full of pastoral atmosphere: broken village walls, deep village roads, ancient stone houses, towering ancient trees, fields with the fragrance of earth, old people chatting on the roadside, and children leaving school at sunset......

These life pictures are deeply rooted in Wu Mingju's heart. He longs for the day when he can use coconut carvings to truly record the details of the life of the volcanic people, and preserve them forever in a unique way.

Since the past few years, Wu Mingju has quietly carried out this work. In his vision, volcanic life is suitable for white drawing. So, for countless nights, he drew various scenes of volcanic life over and over again, and made renderings of white drawing techniques on the computer, striving to come up with the most satisfactory patterns before carving.

This is a "gradient dream" of coconut carving. Wu Mingju told Hai Volcano that after the creation of the series of life scrolls, he would turn to another higher-level pursuit, that is, to put the hundred scenes of Qiongzhou on coconut carving. "We are full of beautiful scenery in Hainan, the end of the world, Luhuitou, Wanquan River, volcanic crater, these places are not only beautiful, but also have moving stories and legends, why not inject these elements into the creation of coconut carvings?"

This inspiration comes from one of his previous works, "Hua Feng Returns to the Nest". In 2008, Wu Mingju was inspired by the Bird's Nest at the main venue of the Olympic Games, and carved a proud work "Huafeng Returns to the Nest" with a piece of rosewood: the entire "Huafeng Returns to the Nest" is like a Bird's Nest Gymnasium, with a nest and a bird, giving people a feeling of spreading their wings and flying, implying that the Beijing Olympic Games are flying like a bird, and spreading the Olympic spirit of the Chinese nation to the world.

The appearance of the coconut shell jar is simple and simple, and the relief carvings of landscapes, trees and pavilions are lifelike, and the color and shade gradient are natural. What's even more amazing is that the lid of the pot is hand-dug out and carved into the shape of a blooming flower, which is inserted into the coconut pot almost seamlessly. This coconut pot called "So Many Delicate Rivers and Mountains" can actually be regarded as a "military training" before Wu Mingju created a hundred scenes in Qiongzhou. He said, "The preciousness of coconut carving is reflected in the craftsmanship, and a complete coconut shell carved work is the most collectible work of art." ”

At present, Wu Mingju has three wishes: to compile what he learned from his master into a book, so that the skill of coconut carving can be passed on from generation to generation; Hold coconut carving skills training courses, so that more people can learn coconut carving; Start a coconut carving company, rely on fine coconut carving skills to create high-quality artworks, and make a profit through market-oriented operations.

Engaging in coconut carving requires meticulous carving, and it also requires a heart that can endure loneliness.

The coconut shell, which has a simple and humble appearance, has been trimmed and polished by coconut carving craftsmen, and carved into a unique art treasure.

Historically, the preciousness of Hainan coconut carving is reflected in the skills of traditional handicrafts. As an ancient traditional skill, coconut carving is a kind of decay into a magical art, through the barrier of time, engraved the memory of history, it is not only a means of livelihood passed down from generation to generation by craftsmen, but also contains the unique humanistic atmosphere and profound cultural connotation of Qiongzhou.

Today, although Hainan coconut carving is no longer brilliant, folk craftsmen still silently adhere to and inherit this carving skill.

Meitie Village, Jindui Village Committee, Roughly Po Town, Meilan District, Haikou City, is a beautiful village, the pond in front of the village is rippling, and the ancient trees behind the village are towering, the bamboo leaves are verdant, and the coconut trees are forested. Meithep Village is not only a beautiful village with a beautiful environment and simple folk customs, but also an ancient village with rich cultural charm. Walking around the village, you can see centuries-old ruins. There are the ruins of the former residence of Feng Hao, a Jinshi in the Ming Dynasty, and it is also the hometown of Feng Jisheng, a patriotic poet in the late Qing Dynasty.

In the village, there is a folk coconut carving craftsman named Zhu Fan, who interprets the beauty of the craftsman's ingenuity with a persistent craftsman spirit and a carving knife.

Zhu Fan's coconut carving studio is a very simple shed next to the courtyard of a traditional house in northern Qiongbei, with his belongings piled up everywhere and simple workbenches inside and outside the shed. Even in such a humble environment, it did not affect Zhu Fan's creative enthusiasm at all, he indulged in his coconut carving world, and 20 years have passed in the blink of an eye. He said that he has a dream and hopes to use his life's work to do a good job of coconut carving and retain this unique skill.

Zhu Fan, who came from an intellectual family, originally worked in a bank, but later switched to a tourism company. Once walking on the streets of Haikou, he bought a coconut carving handicraft, and the exquisite skills shown in the coconut carving fascinated him.

The inadvertent encounter with the coconut carving made him and the coconut carving form an indissoluble bond. In order to do a good job of coconut carving, he chose to stay away from the hustle and bustle of the city and live in the countryside. He bought back the carving knife, started from scratch, pondered the coconut carving process, and indulged in his own coconut carving world.

Zhu Fan is not the same as the traditional craftsman, he came into contact with coconut carving by chance, not a teacher, nor was he born in a professional class, with his love and dedication to coconut carving, while carving and learning, from books, from daily life to find inspiration, meditation to learn and experience the mystery of traditional coconut carving.

Zhu Fan said that he returned to the countryside and silently studied the coconut carving skills, as his career for the rest of his life, there were many contradictions and confusions in his heart. The first thing that needs to be overcome is to precipitate one's own mind, so that there is no distraction, be willing to be lonely, and persevere; Usually you have to not be disturbed by miscellaneous things, and abide by your own schedule, no matter how the outside world changes. If there are no guests, Zhu Fan starts working at 9 a.m. every day, making coconut carvings for more than 8 hours a day.

From material selection, drawing, carving, splicing, polishing, until the completion of a coconut carving work, Zhu Fan is always meticulous, and in his eyes, there is no room for a flaw. Walking on the blade of a knife every day, hand injuries are commonplace. Some works are complex, time-consuming and labor-intensive, and can be completed in months. Although the carving process is very hard, I feel a sense of pride when I see the work I carved with a knife and put it vividly in front of me.

After 20 years of lonely practice, wielding a knife like a pen in every square inch, from craft to art, he walked by, and finally explored and practiced a set of pure handmade coconut carving technology.

As a designer and carver of coconut carving, Zhu Fan measured materials and applied art according to his aptitude, showing the natural beauty of coconut carving vividly. Zhu Fan from the time he picked up the carving knife, he devoted himself to studying the coconut carving skills, drawing nutrition from the works of the carving masters, on the basis of learning the traditional carving skills, learning from others' strengths, constantly innovating, and gradually forming a set of his own design concept and processing and production of coconut carving technology - mortise and tenon structure.

As the saying goes, "tenon and tenon ten thousand years of prison", without an iron nail, only by relying on the mortise and tenon process, you can do it tightly, intermittently, seamlessly, and still strong and beautiful after thousands of years. Between the concave and convex, with the system as the balance, hidden in the show, after thousands of years and long fragrance, this is the charm of the mortise and tenon craft.

The mortise and tenon joint is a national memory earlier than Chinese characters, containing the broad wisdom of ancient craftsmen and the soul of traditional Chinese wood art. For thousands of years, mortise and tenon joints have been derived from thousands of patterns, which are widely used in many fields such as architecture, furniture, and toys. Between a tenon and a tenon, when turning and turning, it condenses the essence of thousands of years of traditional Chinese culture.

In the process of creating coconut carving works, Zhu Fan skillfully uses the mortise and tenon technology, through the tight fastening of the concave and convex parts of the coconut carving components, to achieve the degree of "seamless", so as to play the role of connection and fixation. This carving method is very difficult, to overcome a problem of easy thermal expansion and contraction, which is the wonderful feature of Zhu Fan's entire coconut carving works. The level of craftsmanship of the craftsmen can be clearly reflected through the mortise and tenon structure. Zhu Fan's coconut carving works made with mortise and tenon structure are infiltrated with his own efforts and fully demonstrate his superb carving skills.

Zhu Fan's coconut carving craft also uses a variety of carving techniques such as plane relief, three-dimensional relief, sunken carving, openwork carving, etc., and its carved teacups, tea cans, incense burners, coconut shell bowls, wine cups and other coconut carving works, delicate carving, ingenious craftsmanship, small and exquisite, elegant picture, durable, ornamental and practical in one.

What is even more rare is that Zhu Fan's coconut carving works retain the basic characteristics of coconut shell materials in the original way, and the coconut carving works made by the traditional mortise and tenon joint process are the most prominent handmade skills in Hainan coconut carving works today.

The body temperature of the hand, integrated into each process, shows the carving power of turning decay into magic on the coconut shell that may crack at any time. When the original coconut shells are carved into exquisite works of art in the hands, it is amazing.

Zhu Fan, who is obsessed with coconut carving handicrafts, carves flowers and dreams, and integrates people's pursuit of auspiciousness and beauty into coconut carving works.

The finals of the Hainan Division of the 2018 Beijing Cultural and Creative Competition opened at the Hainan Provincial Museum on the morning of July 28. Zhu Fan, who was invited to participate in the opening ceremony as a guest, demonstrated the coconut carving skills and coconut carving works on the spot, and played live with coconut carved gourd silk, which won the applause of the participants.

It is the persistence of coconut carving skills that has allowed Zhu Fan to gain various recognitions along the way. And his coconut carving works have also entered people's field of vision. For the students who come here, he always shows special enthusiasm, carefully explains the history of Hainan coconut carving to the students, shows his coconut carving works, and lets them know more about this characteristic skill of Hainan as much as possible.

I went to Meithep Village twice to interview Zhu Fan, and the deep impression he left on the author can be described as "amazing". What he shows is not only exquisite carving skills, but also a touching and dedicated craftsman spirit. Starting from scratch, to the present, exquisite coconut carving works with unique Hainan characteristics have been born from his skillful hands, which is the result of silent perseverance and hard work.

Zhu Fan said that the traditional handmade coconut carving production process is very complicated, the formation of a molding coconut carving handicrafts to go through the selection of materials, molding, carving, flowering, inlay, polishing, decoration and other processes, each process is sloppy, a little careless, will be abandoned.

A good coconut carving work, starting from the selection of materials, must be extra careful. The older the coconut shell, the better, and the cracked and tender ones cannot be used. Different shapes of coconut shells can be selected according to the material to design coconut carving works of different shapes. All of this depends on the carver's perception and his extraordinary skills and creative inspiration.

Zhu Fan is usually low-key and calm, because he has always been full of confidence in the inheritance and innovation of the traditional craftsmanship of coconut carving in Hainan, as well as the development and promotion of coconut carving.

Hainan coconut carving, which was once known as the "Tiannan tribute", has been driven straight into the palace wall of the imperial city in history, carrying countless glory.

The artists guarded the loneliness of time, hid the boredom, faded away the distracting thoughts, wielded the knife like a pen, carved carefully, and gave this ordinary fruit core a noble artistic life, and passed down through the ages.

Coconut cultivation in Hainan has been practiced for more than 2,000 years. In the Han Dynasty's "Nanyue Pen Play", it was recorded that "there are many coconuts in Qiongzhou, and the coconut mat was used in the Han Dynasty when Emperor Cheng was in the world." It can be seen that during the Han Dynasty, Hainan coconut had been promoted to the imperial tribute.

With the rise of commerce and trade in the Song Dynasty, a large number of coconuts were transported across the sea to the Central Plains. In the Ming Dynasty, coconut cultivation in Hainan spread all over the east coast of the island. When the cognition and love for coconut became stronger and stronger, coconut carving, as a symbol and carrier for people to express their emotions, began to shine.

The first to use coconut shells should be the earliest ancestors of the Li people on Hainan Island. The ancestors of the Li nationality knew how to make pottery and canoes very early, but compared with the complex pottery-making technology, the coconut shells available in the wilderness are resistant to acid and alkali, and it may be more simple and casual to make containers.

In 1963, in the second volume of "Selected Research Materials of the Li Nationality" compiled by the Guangdong Institute of Ethnic Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the appearance of coconut shells in the daily life of the Li people was described: "The scoop is made by coconut shells with wooden handles...... Putting porridge into a rice bowl from a pot or rice urn ......"There are also bowls that draw water with coconut shells and scoops......"

However, the emergence of the prototype of coconut carving can only be traced back to the first year of Xuanzong in the Middle Tang Dynasty (847). According to the Tang Dynasty Liu Sui's "Ridge Table Record Difference": "The coconut tree, also like sea palm, is as strong and big as an ou bowl, with a rough skin such as a big belly, and a hard shell, solid and hard, two or three points thick. There is a round like an egg, that is, cut off a head, sand and stone grinding, to remove its wrinkled skin, its spotted brocade, with platinum to fill it, thought to be a water jar, rare and lovely. ”

At that time, there was a folk legend that the coconut shell had the characteristics of "poisonous that is cracked", and the Tang Dynasty poet Tortoise Meng still left the poem "The wine is full of coconut cups to disinfect the mist, and the wind follows the banana leaves to the boat". "Notes on Eastern Guangdong" also records that when Li Deyu, a minister of the Tang Dynasty, was relegated to Yazhou, he sawed coconut shells into scoops, spoons, bowls, and cups for eating and drinking.

In the Ming and Qing dynasties, coconut carvings were often used by officials as treasures to pay tribute to the imperial court, and had the reputation of "Tiannan tribute". In the materials of the milk tea bowl of the Qing Palace, records of coconut carving were also found.

The Qing palace drinking milk tea needs to be accompanied by a royal bowl with excellent quality and fine workmanship. At that time, Guangdong paid tribute to the milk tea bowl made of coconut shell, the outer wall of the bowl is coconut shell, the craftsman on the thin coconut shell surface, skillfully carved pine, bamboo and plum ornamentation, the inner wall is embedded in silver.

The coconut silver bowl is simple and lightweight, it is one of the few milk tea bowls in the Qing Palace, and the emperor not only used it in small and medium-sized banquets, but also preferred drinking utensils when drinking milk tea. In the book "Haigong Case" in the Qing Dynasty, "coconut carved ink cartridges" also appeared many times.

In the "Encyclopedia of Chinese Art Appreciation", coconut carving is classified as a miscellaneous item of fruit core carving. According to the book, the coconut shell carving process was originally only made into simple wine cups, tea cups, study utensils and boxes and jars and other utensils, and then the inscription poems of the literati and scholars gradually made the coconut shell carving art to a perfect state of transformation, but the best works still have to be enshrined in the palace, especially in the Yongzheng period, the modeling, decoration and carving techniques of coconut shell carving utensils have been very exquisite. At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, it was very common to use coconut carving as gifts and supplies.

Time has passed, and the former "Tiannan tribute" has entered the homes of ordinary people from the "old Wang Xie Tang Qianyan". According to the 1963 "Haikou Handicraft Industry Export Survey Report" provided by the Haikou Municipal Archives, before the Anti-Japanese War, Hainan coconut carvings had been sold well in the Nanyang Islands and European countries, and also won the first prize at the International Product Exhibition in Hanoi, Vietnam.

At that time, there were more than 100 artists in the production of coconut carving, with an annual output of more than 20,000 pieces, of which more than 10,000 pieces were exported for export. At that time, it should be the prosperous period of coconut carving in Hainan.

After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the war spread rapidly to all parts of Hainan, artists were displaced, there was a shortage of raw materials for coconut carving, and export sales were interrupted for a time.

By the time Hainan was liberated in 1950, there were only more than ten surviving coconut carving artists. Hainan coconut carving, helplessly through the bleakest years in history.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Hainan coconut carving began to regain its vitality. In 1955, the first coconut carving craft factory in Hainan ——— Hainan Special Handicraft Factory was established, which is the predecessor of Haikou Coconut Carving Craft Factory. With the expansion of market demand, coconut carving products began to enter mass production.

At the same time, some artists with coconut carving skills also began to establish individual coconut carving factories, and gradually formed a group of coconut carving enterprises based on Haikou Coconut Carving Craft Factory and Wenchang Craft Factory.

Hainan coconut carving has participated in the exhibition of the Soviet Union, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ceylon, Indonesia, Japan and other international specialty exhibitions, which have been well received, and have also won a commemorative medal issued by the GDR. In 1978, the "Carp Spitting Beads" table lamp produced by Wenchang County Craft Factory participated in the National Arts and Crafts Exhibition and won the Guangdong High-quality "Four New" Product Award.

In 1987, the four-piece coconut palm carving set participated in the 20th National Tourism Products Domestic Handicraft Fair and won the first prize of excellent tourist souvenirs......

With the boom of tourism in Hainan, coconut carving has also begun to transform from high-end boutique to low-end tourism handicrafts, and has gradually become widely known.

Today, Hainan coconut carving handicrafts have expanded from more than 300 traditional to thousands, only the use of coconut shell to make handicrafts, the annual output value of tens of millions of yuan, products are exported to the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and other countries and regions.

At present, the coconut carving handicraft factory is mostly processed by order of accessories, mainly distributed in the eastern and northern areas of the island, and there are more than a dozen parts processing bases in the eastern suburbs of Chinese Chang.

Wu Mingju, who was born in Baoming Village, a neighboring village of Fudao Village, in the 70s of the last century, caught up with the good era of coconut carving development when he was young.