A craft that exists because of "cherishing things" - Kintsugi

The picture above is a teacup that Tian Shejun accidentally found when he entered a grocery store some time ago. The young grocery store owner likes to collect old things. It is said that this broken and then repaired cup was left over from the Qing Dynasty. Although Mr. Tianshe has no interest in collecting antiques, the cracks repaired with gold paint on the cup are very attractive.

After further questioning, I found out that this kind of repairing process for broken porcelain is called "jinzhu". People in the old days cherished every item in their lives. In order to preserve the original appearance and meaning of the utensils, society The above is derived from the craft of "gold repair", and the utensils treated with gold repair appear more precious, further enriching the significance of the utensils in people's lives.

Fortunately, in this era, there are still young people who are willing to devote themselves to the ancient metal craftsmanship, repair people's beloved utensils, and reunite their reluctance and regret.

Across the streets, in an old apartment, Zheng Ting was carefully looking at the damaged utensils, carefully gluing, painting, polishing, and polishing them again.

Due to the environment in which she grew up, Zheng Ting has lived in an artistic atmosphere since she was a child. This exposure has made her more attentive to the beauty of the details of life. Zheng Ting accidentally discovered the craft of gold painting in Japan, and was moved by the story and significance behind it, and began to get in touch with lacquerware and gold painting.

Kintsugi, an ancient craft for repairing lacquerware, can also be used on pottery and woodware. After various complicated procedures, it needs to be covered with pure gold or gold foil to decorate the traces and give the object new life. Gold restoration is an iterative process, and sometimes it takes up to a month to complete a work.

We often regard broken objects as “losing value” and therefore throw them away. Although there is still a trace of reluctance in my heart. The fascinating thing about the philosophy of gold repair is that no matter whether things are originally valuable or not, they all contain people's rich emotions and meanings.

Fragmentation does not take away its meaning for people. The use of noble gold foil to emphasize the traces of cracks is the most noble significance to the history of the artifact.

Zheng Ting, who was originally a model, began to take the gold repair craftsmanship she learned as her own hobby. At first, she only helped her father who loved antiques to repair. Later, more and more people came to Zheng Ting to find her. , reunite their beloved utensils. Only then did Zheng Ting deeply realize the special significance and value of this traditional craft. Faced with the impending loss of Jin Zhi, Zheng Ting decided to engage in the restoration of utensils full-time. While helping more people to "restore broken utensils", she also conveyed the life philosophy of "cherishing things" to more people and let more young people know about it. and learn the art of goldsmithing.

Zheng Ting said: "You can make an incomplete object complete, accept the incompleteness, and even turn the incompleteness into a sense of beauty. I think this kind of idea and craftsmanship are very beautiful things. It should continue to be passed down."

People often say that a broken mirror cannot be put back together, and it may be difficult to restore its original appearance after being broken. However, because we cherish the company and various experiences of past objects, we carefully repair and preserve them to become new beauty, even if there are traces, it is more moving.

It is true that cherishing things is a blessing.