The
art of the hairy monkeys combines the ‘monkeys’ with the artist’s vision,
creating a bizarre artistic world.
Although
they have recently evolved into complicated satirical creations often
representing scenes of imperial China (but not only), these small monkeys have
a long tradition behind them.
The Legend of the Hairy Monkeys
According
to legend, during the Daoguang period, there was a drug shop called “Nanqing
Rentang” on the main street of Xumawumen outside Beijing.
The
legend tells of an irascible shopkeeper, as he often shouted at his employees.
One day, an apprentice who was still shaken by the harsh words received during
the day was rearranging the ingredients used to prepare medicines in the shop.
To make time pass more quickly, he modeled a small figure using the fluffy
flower bud from a winter magnolia and the limbs and head of a cicada. The
apprentice showed his figure to his colleagues, joking that he looked like
their boss.
What’s
a ‘hairy monkey’?
Hairy
Monkeys are made with four Chinese herbal medicines: cicada shell to make the head and
limbs, Magnolia to make
the body, Bletilla tuber
used as adhesive, and wood
to make props.
In the early years of the Republic of China, there
was an artist making ‘hairy monkeys’ in the Dong’an market. Because of his
surname Wang, people called him “Monkey Wang.” His booth was often surrounded
by a group of people. A little boy named Cao
Yijian (曹仪简) was simply fascinated and spent a lot of
time watching the artist creating his work. He secretly learned the skills of
the master, and later the boy became the heir of this tradition.
Cao Yi
Jian, born in Beijing in 1925, Manchu is the 19th generation grandson of the
Cao Xueqin family (He was Chinese writer during the Qing dynasty). He not only
inherited the traditional monkey art, but also developed and opened up a new
artistic realm, showing new worlds and content. He not only expresses folk
customs, and portrays historical figures, but also creates satirical pieces.
His original creations are rich and colorful, overflowing with rich old Beijing
folk culture atmosphere.
Guo
Futian and Cui Yulan, natives of Beijing, are an
another couple of artists, keepers of this tradition with their shop in the
heart of Beijing.
The effects of the atomic bombs.
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