Fujian artist revives ancient shadow carving craft

Photo shows a piece of stone shadow carving by Li Yahua. (Photo courtesy of Li Yahua)

What can artists create from stone? A piece by Li Yahua, an inheritor of Huihe stone shadow carving, a national-level intangible cultural heritage item, offers an answer.

In her hands, hard hematite becomes as delicate as silk. In one of her works featuring 12 female characters from the 18th-century Chinese literary classic "Dream of the Red Chamber," the women sit or stand, playing chess or admiring scrolls, each with her own posture and expression. Every detail is rendered with remarkable finesse.

Li Yahua grew up in a family that had carved stone for generations in Hui'an county, Quanzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. Her father, Li Zousheng, is a renowned stone carving craftsman. After finishing primary school, Li followed her father to Xiamen, where chisels, hammers and stone slabs became part of her daily life.

But when she formally began training in stone carving at 19, she was far from enthusiastic. "I was young, and no one talked about 'intangible cultural heritage' back then. I worried people would look down on me," she said. After trying other jobs, she eventually returned to learn the craft from her father.

Stone shadow carving evolved from a technique invented during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911) by Hui'an artisan Li Zhou.

The craftsman uses a chisel to tap the hematite, removing dark areas to reveal white. By controlling the density and depth of the tiny chisel marks, the artist creates a full range of light and shadow. During carving, the left hand rests on the stone, with the index finger steadying the end of the chisel, while the right hand strikes.

"The angle, pause and force of each tap determine the size and depth of every dot. You have to focus completely," Li Yahua said. It takes at least three months of practice just to keep the dots from drifting off target.

At 22, Li had trained for three years but still doubted her abilities. "My father almost never commented on my work, so I had no idea whether it was any good. I would finish a piece and just leave it in a corner," she said.

That changed when a merchant came to buy stone carvings from her father and spotted one by Li. "He walked past it, then doubled back for another look. He even squatted down to examine it carefully. In the end, he signaled for my mother to pack it up along with the other works," she recalled.

After he left, Li quietly asked her mother how much the piece had sold for. The answer was about 5,000 yuan ($707).

"For that time, it was a lot of money! I had never felt so validated. For the first time, I felt that my work had real value, and I finally gained confidence in myself." From then on, she threw herself into learning stone shadow carving from her father, and through years of steady practice, she grew to love the craft.

As her skills improved, her work drew wider attention. But Li didn't stop at traditional monochrome carving. She led her team in bold experiments with color, adding rich pigments to their engravings to enhance their visual appeal.

"Stone shadow carving is a young person's craft. Most artists peak between their late teens and late 20s, when their eyesight is at its best," Li said.

In 2008, she invested nearly all her family's savings into building the Huihe Stone Culture Park in Xiamen. After years of effort by Li and her team, the park has grown into a national 4A-level scenic spot showcasing stone culture and carving.

Inspired by her example, her son Dai Yi'an has joined the effort to preserve stone shadow carving. He now focuses on bringing modern aesthetics into the craft, helping it reach new audiences through cultural-creative design and tailor-made gift products.