Man quit job at 50 to pursue dream of pyrography
2022-12-26
Pyrography is also known as “fire needle embroidery”. The painter uses the red-hot nib to burn delicate patterns on the board or paper to outline the effect of depth and shade. It is as delicate as embroidery, with both the subtlety of fine brushwork and the artistic conception of ink painting.
In the Faraway Catalpa Eco Resort in Wulingyuan, Zhangjiajie, Deng Shihua’s temporary studio is surrounded by pyrography works about Zhangjiajie scenery.
Deng Shihua, born in 1966, is a native of Zhangjiajie. In his eyes, his hometown is attractive, with unique scenery and charm in all seasons. And the pyrography can just show the stunning style of his hometown, and can also enrich the diversity of Zhangjiajie’s cultural and creative industries.
When the copper nib in high temperature touches the board, there is a risk of burning if it stays too long; but if it stays too short, it is difficult to leave a mark.
What is much rarer is that Deng Shihua was not satisfied with scratching the surface of pyrography, but kept improving his skills every day. His works have won awards in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition, and have been presented as gifts to Southeast Asia by the Wulingyuan District Government of Zhangjiajie.
Although Deng Shihua is extremely talented, this dream-chasing pyrographer has also thought of giving up because of his predicament. Whenever he tried to give in to reality, his wife Li Jintao would say, “Don’t give up. You've been sticking to it for so many years.”
Li Jintao is Deng Shihua’s staunch supporter on the way to pursue his dream. The Zhangjiajie pyrography traditional art craft was included in the Zhangjiajie municipal intangible cultural heritage list in 2020. And Deng Shihua is the inheritor of this craft. In order to let more people feel the charm of pyrography, Deng Shihua and his wife had a “studio dream”. Li Jintao said, “We’d like to build a studio at home. If someone wants to learn pyrography, they can experience it here.”
Now, Deng Shihua is not limited to the creation and description of Zhangjiajie scenery. He said: “We can draw different mountains all over the country, as well as flowers, birds, animals and people.” Deng Shihua believes that this may make pyrography known and loved by more people.
Although Deng Shihua is extremely talented, this dream-chasing pyrographer has also thought of giving up because of his predicament. Whenever he tried to give in to reality, his wife Li Jintao would say, “Don’t give up. You've been sticking to it for so many years.”
Li Jintao is Deng Shihua’s staunch supporter on the way to pursue his dream. The Zhangjiajie pyrography traditional art craft was included in the Zhangjiajie municipal intangible cultural heritage list in 2020. And Deng Shihua is the inheritor of this craft. In order to let more people feel the charm of pyrography, Deng Shihua and his wife had a “studio dream”. Li Jintao said, “We’d like to build a studio at home. If someone wants to learn pyrography, they can experience it here.”
Now, Deng Shihua is not limited to the creation and description of Zhangjiajie scenery. He said: “We can draw different mountains all over the country, as well as flowers, birds, animals and people.” Deng Shihua believes that this may make pyrography known and loved by more people.
Deng Shihua and his wife are more worried about the heritage of pyrography than even their own plight, which represents his great heart and responsibility as an inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage item. The Hunan Federation of Literary and Art Circles and other departments inspected Deng Shihua’s intangible cultural heritage base of pyrography, which Deng rejoiced at. He hoped that tourists from all over the country could see and enjoy this intangible cultural heritage.
