"没有金刚钻，别拦瓷器活", 他的手艺让残瓷起死回生 | Mending Crockery

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=w0501wtoa6v&width=500&height=375&auto=0

China got its English name from being the home of china, usually glittering and translucent material that was once greatly appreciated as artwork. 

中国是瓷器的故乡。中国的英文名“China”,正是瓷器的意思。这种器物晶莹剔透，色泽鲜明，一直被古人当作艺术品把玩。然而，它最大的缺点就是易碎。

But china can however, be quite fragile. So when broken, is it completely useless? Or could it be bestowed a second life with a sense of art?

破碎的瓷器是否就此失去价值？作为艺术品，他们能否被给予第二次生命？

Cao Qingli answers that question as an experienced craftsman.

手艺人曹庆励用行动回答了这个问题。

Liuzhou city, south of China. 

中国，南方，柳州。

Located in the mountains is a teahouse called "Up On That Hill” and run by Cao.

柳州的山间有一座茶室，名叫“那个山头”。

Amidst the fragrance of tea, the crockery collection is displayed discreetly. Despite being covered in scars, the pieces show a different sense of charm and the beauty of imperfection.

茶香氤氲之中，件件瓷器陈列开来。它们满身伤痕，却独具韵味，默默阐释着残缺之美。

The crockery were all broken when they arrived and required an ancient technique to mend them. 

这些瓷器，在被送到他这里之前，都因为各种不同的原因损坏了。让它们重现完整的是一种叫做“锔瓷”的古老技术。

Broken crockery can be repaired with nails made of copper or iron. There's an old saying, "Never mend the crockery without the proper drill," that derived from this business. The craftsmen actually use the drill on the crockery, displaying their amazing skills.

这种技术可以把打碎的瓷器用铜、铁等金属钉钉起来，让它们得以修复。中国有句古语，“没有金刚钻，就别揽瓷器活”，说的就是这种技术。“金刚钻”既指用来在瓷器上钻孔的工具，也指匠人的超凡技巧。

In Cao's words, however, the ancient skill is "functionally extinct." Since the 1980s, along with the development of technology, more and more cheap products have come on the market. Hence, the mending of crockery is no longer necessary. 

用曹庆励的话说，锔瓷是一门“功能性灭绝”的手艺。因为在上个世纪80年代以后，随着科技的发展，市面上有了大量便宜的陶瓷器，人们已经不需要再去修补瓷器了。

Cao is not simply repairing earthenware. "In terms of the word 'handicraft', the skillful hands come first," he says. "But the craft is what we really want." 

但曹庆励所追求的，并不是简简单单地“修复”瓷器。“手艺手艺，手是基础，它代表的是技，而艺，才是我们追求的方向。”他所说的艺，是艺术的艺。

Cao sees the "craft" as an art. For him, mending is actually a kind of recreation. "When I mend a crockery, I'd feel the cracks," he says. "It always has its unique essence. I'd then work on it together with my own understandings."

锔瓷于曹庆励而言其实是一次再创作的过程。他说：“修复器物的时候，我顺势而为，根据器物本身的韵味，加上自己对它们的理解，对其进行修复。”

Before his craftsman days, Cao was an entrepreneur for more than a decade. But he never thought it was what he really wanted. By chance, he met Wang Zhenhai, a mending master. Wang considers it as "saving lives and reviving the art." Cao was touched by the spirit of meticulousness. He determined that he would sell his company and learn mending skills as Wang's last apprentice.

在成为手艺人之前，曹庆励经营了十几年的企业，但他始终觉得那不是真正适合自己的事情。一次偶然的机会，曹庆励认识了锔瓷大师王振海。大师将锔瓷看成是“缝补生命、修复艺术”，件件都必须精工细作的精神让曹庆励动容。于是他决定卖掉企业，跟随王振海学习锔瓷，成为他的关门弟子。

Mending crockery seems a lonely occupation, but Cao enjoys it very much. He says, "Working with people often leads to misunderstandings of the world. But with crockery, there are no distractions."

锔瓷是一个孤独的过程，但曹庆励却很享受。他说：“跟人打交道会出现很多对世界的误差，而在跟器物交流的时候，这方面的误会会比较少。”

He also enjoys the sheer ecstasy every time he finishes a piece of work, as well as the feeling of happiness he brings to others. "When I return the mended crockery, I can see how joyful they are. That happiness I can offer," Cao says with a contented look on his face.

他享受与器物之间的交流，享受完成一件作品后强烈的喜悦，也享受带给别人快乐的感觉。“每次我把修复好的器物还给它们的主人时，看到他们开心的样子，我感到我能带给他们快乐。”说这话的时候，曹庆励同样一脸幸福。

Nowadays, Cao Qingli can earn his daily bread from his craftsmanship. He does the thing he likes while living the life he wants.

现在的曹庆励，靠自己的手艺养活家人。他做着自己喜欢的事，过着自己想要的人生。

Cameraman: Zhang Jinbo

Film editor: An Yang, Lu Gengrui

Story written by: Wang Xiaoxiao

English editor: Bertram Niles

 

往期链接