Chinese woodworking craftsmanship----wood carving

Chinese woodworking craftsmanship centres on mortise-and-tenon joints, encompassing three major categories: large-scale timberwork (architecture), fine woodwork (furniture, Buddhist artefacts, etc.), and wood carving. Traditional techniques emphasise skilful use of materials and manual processes, such as applying raw lacquer and hot wax for surface finishing. Modern woodworking integrates mechanisation and automation, yet also embraces a trend emphasising design value and promoting the use of eco-friendly timber. 

Wood carving is a folk craft within sculpture, evolving from carpentry. It encompasses three main categories: three-dimensional round carving, root carving (artworks crafted from naturally shaped tree roots), and relief carving. Materials include fine-grained woods such as nanmu and zitan, while techniques encompass round carving, relief carving, and openwork carving. By material, it can be categorized into rosewood carving, white wood carving, boxwood carving, and others. The carving subjects encompass themes such as figures, animals, and flowers. The production process involves steps including sketching creative drafts, carving rough forms, and polishing and finishing.

In China, woodcarving schools are mostly distinguished by region. For example: Dongyang wood carving, Yueqing boxwood carving, Quanzhou wood carving, Chaozhou lacquered wood carving from Guangdong, Fujian longan wood carving, Beijing palace lanterns, Taiwan wood carving, Ningbo vermilion-gilded wood carving, Jianchuan wood carving from Yunnan, Hubei wooden boats, Qufu zelkova wood carving, Suzhou rosewood carving, Shanghai rosewood carving, Nanjing antique-style wood carving, Taizhou painted wood carving from Jiangsu, Shanxi wood carving, Weifang Rosewood Inlay Carving from Shandong, Shanghai Boxwood and White Wood Small Carvings, Yongling Birch Carving from Liaoning, Jiangxi Nuo Masks, Tongshan Wood Carving and Xianpu Bang Wood Carving from Hubei, Tianjin Wood Carving, Dongshan Sea Willow Carving, and so on.
These woodcarving schools wield significant influence nationwide or locally, with the most renowned being Quanzhou woodcarving, Dongyang woodcarving, Yueqing boxwood carving, Guangdong Chaozhou gold-lacquered woodcarving, and Fujian longan wood carving. These five major schools are collectively known as “China's Five Great Woodcarving Traditions.”

Wooden carved panels come in diverse forms, including shallow relief, deep relief, openwork, and round carving, with relief being the predominant style. Many feature deep relief combined with openwork, enhancing the sense of depth and creating a near-round carving effect. As wooden artifacts, their insolubility and inability to be welded prevent modern techniques from mass-producing them, making manual craftsmanship essential.
Woods suitable for carving are generally preferred to be not overly hard, such as boxwood, pear wood, camphor wood, rosewood, walnut, lychee wood, teak, burl wood, and imported rosewood. These woods feature uniform structure, beautiful color, and attractive grain patterns. In traditional architecture, they are used for hanging flower doors, exterior eaves, doors and windows, lintels, partition panels, and screens.
Wood for carved panels requires a fine, dense texture with sufficient hardness and straight grain. Material selection is particularly critical for relief carvings. Currently favored woods include new rosewood, zitan, new huali, camphor, linden, nanmu, sewood, and ginkgo.

Wood is everywhere, yet it is the wisdom and skill of craftsmen that breathe life into ordinary timber and elevate its economic value. Our products help you connect with natural materials and experience the joy of working with wood.