Clay Figurine

Clay Figurines

From the Song Dynasty, urban economic development brought about the prosperity of folk culture. With the emergence of folk style small sculpture works, the trend towards folk art became quite significant. The style could be found in paintings of the same period. There were also many paintings with the themes of folk customs and babies. During the Ming dynasty and Qing dynasty, small clay sculptures with secular subjects became important sculpture varieties. Different from the small palace exquisite carvings, folk clay sculpture boasted of the fun of typical folk living. The fun is more real and more directly reflects the general public's expectation of life and simple aesthetic features.

Qiaoer “Muhura”

The themes of children playing were common during the Song Dynasty. Paintings with 100 children and children playing and the scenes of playing children done on ceramics emerged during the dynasty. Accordingly, there were similar baby themes in small folk clay sculptures.

Clay babies from the time were called Muhura or Qiaoer. The emergence of these small clay sculptures was directly related to folk customs from the Song Dynasty. During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Double Seventh Festival (the seventh day of the seventh lunar month) was an important day, and clay figurines were made meaning Qiqiao (pleading for skills), so they were called Qiaoer.

Clay figurines from the Song Dynasty were known as Muhura and were closely related to the secularization of Buddhism. The Buddhist story holds that Muhura was the son of Yasodhara and Sakyamuni before he became a monk. Yasodhara was pregnant for six years and gave birth to Muhura when Sakyamuni achieved enlightenment. Later, Muhura becomes one of the Buddhist disciples.

About at the age of 6 or 7, Muhura brought his mother's token to visit his father. To show creditability, Sakyamuni took other disciples. With innate intelligence, Muhura told his father apart from them at first sight. It was just because of this reason that people called this kind of clay figurines Muhura. People connected this story with the custom on the Seventh Day Festival, marking the origin of the tradition of displaying clay figurines during the festival. At first, the custom was prevalent in imperial chambers and later became popular among the general public. At the time, imperial Muhura was quite luxurious; some were made with ivory, gold, and jewels. However, the Muhura with the greatest artistic and vitality are folk ones.

The making of Muhura was most prevalent during the Northern Song Dynasty. Muhura color sculptures from the time represent a naive and fat baby holding a lotus leaf in one hand. South of the Yangtze River, Suzhou was the manufacturing center of clay figurines. Yuan Yuchang was a famous master of color sculpture, well known for his baby sculptures. It is said that he installed a reed whistle on the color of baby sculptures. When the babies were pressed on the head, the sculpture could give off a cry. In Lin'an (today's Hangzhou), folk color sculptures were prevalent with the emergence of a lane named after the clay figurines sold then, and where there were various small workshops specialized in making clay figurines.

In 1976, some small clay sculptures were found in one of the ruins of the Song Dynasty in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province. There were five complete clay figurines sculptures, about 10cm tall. The five clay figurines are similar in look, but in different postures. Without the glaze, the sculptures have traces of gold dust. All children's sculptures are portraits of boys with thin clothes, standing with their hands in their sleeves or playing.

Sculpting techniques are realistic, giving off a simple and kind feeling. These works adopted the techniques of modeling and hand-forming. The heads were modeled, so the five clay figurines had similar looks, but the bodies gave them slight changes in position, so the sculptures showed different faces. Besides the five individual Muhura sculptures, a porcelain pillow in the shape of a child emerged during the Song Dynasty. The work shows outstanding sculpture techniques. Its shape and look are quite similar to folk clay figurines but are more elegant, and the shape of the baby is exquisitely combined with the shape of the porcelain pillow.

The appreciation of clay figurines lasted nearly five hundred years from the Song Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty. The period also witnessed the gradual secularization of Buddhism. Advanced principles of Buddhism were skillfully combined with folk custom, and the emergence of Muhura sculptures is the embodiment of the secularization of Buddhism.

Playing toys—Big Afu

From the late Ming Dynasty, the custom of making clay figurines emerged in Wuxi and became a sideline occupation for farmers. By the mid Qing Dynasty, the custom became increasingly specialized. Special workshops with well-known folk sculptors emerged. Huishan day sculptures are divided into rough and fine sculptures. Sculptures with simple making techniques are rough sculptures, also known as playing goods, which became a type of toy. Fine sculptures were mostly hand-made based on traditional Chinese operas. The most famous fine sculptures are playing toys called Big Afu.

Big Afu is a clay figurine of a baby with a small animal in his arms, symbolizing good fortune and more children and happiness. The sitting baby implies peace and harmony and gives an impression of happiness and unity. Huishan Big Afu clay figurines are usually modeled with simple structures and an easy-to-make process. The technique combines painting and sculpture. In folk clay sculpture, painting is more important.

As for the making of Huishan clay figurines, a saying goes that technique accounts for 30% and painting 70%. Commonly used colors include anthocyanin, green, heliotrope, ultramarine, bright red and light yellow, accompanied by a small amount of golden yellow. The details of clay figurines are outlined. Big Afu clay figurines from the Qing Dynasty were even more colorful with great folk decorative colors. Despite their simple structure, they give off a rich feeling.

It is said that the earliest existing Big Afu clay was made from the original model of the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. It is now housed in the Huishan Clay Figurine Institute. This piece of Big Afu sculpture, 22cm in height, 16.5cm in width, and 7.2cm thick is a high relief molded clay figurine. Big Afu sits in right clothes with his legs crossed, a full face, two bobs, holding a cyan lion in his arms, showing a strong folk style from the south Yangtze River. The look of the Big Afu is thought-provoking. Although it is an image of a baby, it shows an adult-like inscrutable smile, with a less optimistic view of the world but indicates a simple and naive look that combines innocence and wisdom.

The image of Big Afu with a lion in his arms shows the look of a conqueror, and it is the best symbol of exorcism and blessing. This image lasts to this day, and its making remains in Huishan. It shows the transformation in structures and facial features. The image is simpler and more innocent, but the symbolic meaning of blessing remains.

In 1992, the China National Tourism Administration decided to use the image of Big Afu as its mascot. In 2002, the Chinese film Golden Rooster Award and the Hundred Flowers Award took Big Afu as the mascot. Its serene and pleasant look is deeply rooted in the hearts of people. It is a symbol of a happy life.

Hand-made figures based on traditional Chinese operas and Clay Figurine Zhang

Besides playing toys, hand-made figures based on traditional Chinese operas are also the outstanding representatives of clay figurine art.

Hand-made figures based on traditional Chinese operas refer to clay figurines showing theatrical figures. The hand-made figure is set in three major roles of a drama to reflect the plot. Later, the technique gradually kept away from the limitations of drama, with more themes such as myths, legends, historical figures, as well as customs. Without using models, these hand-made figurines are made by craftsmen, which required producers to have considerable artistic accomplishment and skill.

During the late Qing Dynasty, there was a color sculpture artist called Clay Figurine Zhang, Zhang Mingshan in Tianjin. Zhang was born into a family of hand-forming craftsmen. He was good at making various roles from dramas and figures into reality. He was also good at forming faces and was greatly admired by people for his vivid works. Legend has it that Zhang could make vivid stage figures in his sleeves when he was watching dramas. Since Zhang boasted some literature accomplishments, his works are bookish and different from general folk clay works. His works were themed on the Three Kingdoms, the Story by the Water Margin, and A Dream of the Red Mansion. A group of works showing the Painting Xichun shows his good command of general life and elegant style. In addition, he had some custom works to show the joy of general life. Clay Figurine Zhang continues to this day, with his successor not merely limited to Zhang's family.

Folk culture thrived since the Song Dynasty showing great vitality even today. Folk clay sculpture still exists in China in a relatively natural form. When glory within the palace walls faded, folk wisdom and joy remain in the simple clay and bright colors. Cultural heritage also continues in this simple and direct way.