Tracing a golden legacy

Creative creations

New blood is needed to infuse the old medium, Zhang explains.

He particularly praises 39-year-old Xi Wen, head of the design department of the factory, which belongs to the 70-year-old Beijing Gongmei Group.

She joined the group in 2007 after graduating from the Academy of Arts and Design of Tsinghua University as an environmental art design major in 2007. Later, she obtained a Master of Arts in interior design from the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Her cloisonne designs have since won national awards.

"I first learned about the technique when I was a student," the Beijing native recalls. "The beautiful photos of cloisonne appeared in my school books and intrigued me."

Xi's mother was a fan of Chinese paintings and had her study traditional painting and calligraphy at around age 4. She sensed the girl's talent and encouraged her to pursue art as her career.

"My mother told me that I could paint very detailed features of an object, such as the small black dots on a yellow pear. She believed that I could become a great painter because of my 'observant eyes' and sensitivity to color," says Xi.

Xi worked as a designer with the Beijing Gongmei Group for years before she was transferred to the arts-and-crafts factory in 2016. Since then, she has concentrated on learning cloisonne techniques and designing related products as Zhang's apprentice.