Northeast folk artist Li Huanghe

1986 In the summer, after a heavy rain, there was a flood on the Yellow River in Hequ, Shanxi Province, and many fish were washed ashore and scampered in the grass. People living on the banks of the Yellow River saw it and ran to the river to catch fish. Lv Peitian, a 38-year-old carpenter, also came to Yuanyuanwan River with an iron rake to try his luck. After several rakes, Lu Peitian felt his hands were heavy. When he tried hard, the rake caught a strange thing.

This is a big black pimple in a person's heart. It looks like a stone instead of a stone, like wood instead of wood. Put it in your hand, it's really heavy. Lu Peitian put this thing in a big barrel, but it soon sank to the bottom. Lv Peitian carefully washed this skinny guy with a shoe brush, and didn't even let go of every cave. Finally, he found that it was a tree root. Lu Peitian put this thing on the windowsill at home and looked around. The more he looks at it, the more he likes it. It suddenly occurred to him that this thing is very similar to the shape of two animals fighting, and it is much more interesting than his carefully built woodworking furniture. Lu Peitian picked up the tools and began to carefully process the "baby" he caught, turning it into a small work of art, and gave it a clumsy name called "Monkey Play Eagle".

This is the beginning of Lu Peitian's entry into the art hall of root carving. Wood block, known as "heavy wood" in the industry, is the favorite raw material for root carving enthusiasts. From then on, Lu Pei became out of control and became fascinated with the art of root carving.

A good craftsman doesn't delve into his woodworking skills, but revolves around the roots all day. Lu Peitian's behavior puzzled his family, and many people laughed at him behind his back. Lu Peitian neglected to pay attention to other people's eyes and concentrated on his own root carving world. At first, he walked the streets and wandered around villages, looking for good root carving materials everywhere. As long as you meet a favorite tree root, you can quickly tie it to a motorcycle and take it home as quickly as possible. When the old man in the same village saw it, he was surprised and said, "What does Peitian think? Can you split such a big knot when you go back? " Everyone who knew him smiled and said, "Lao Lu has found another good baby!" " "

Back home, Lu Peitian gently put his "baby" on the ground and began to peel it. The work seems simple, but it is actually difficult to do. The chainsaw can't be used, nor can large tools be used, for fear of hurting the shape of the root. Lv Peitian found a hammer used to pound elm bark in the past, and slowly knocked off the epidermis of the roots bit by bit. When processing the endothelium, he is more careful, and his every move is very gentle and meticulous. Look at his careful appearance, not like carving roots, but like creating a great work of art. In fact, peeling is only the basic work of root carving.

Lu Peitian stood the peeled roots on the ground and looked around like a work of art. From this point of view, it is many days. After a while, he will change the direction of the roots, upright, upside down, inclined, up and down, left and right, and every angle is deeply imprinted in his heart. He pondered that the shape and temperament of this root should be best expressed and utilized. His wife doesn't understand Lu Peitian's behavior. It seems to her that she has been wandering around a wooden knot all day, mumbling something. It is better to do some carpentry and earn more money for her two sons to study. Lu Peitian understood his wife's concerns, and he vowed: Don't worry, I like root carving again, and I won't miss carpentry! He knows in his heart that woodworking and root carving art seem to have nothing to do with each other, but in fact they complement each other and technology promotes each other.

After several years, Lu Peitian gradually entered the root carving industry and accumulated a lot of experience. At first, he saw a stubble that had been cut down, and he was ecstatic and ran to dig it out. Later, he gradually learned that the meander is very close to the Yellow River, and most of the willows grow on the shore. These roots are deep and big, with loose material and bad shape. Moreover, due to the problem of soil and water, the things carved by poplar trees are not easy to preserve, and they are easy to crack when they are dry, and easy to get insects when they are wet. It is simply more difficult to produce a good work. After understanding this, Lu Peitian began to head for the mountains. He often rides a motorcycle and walks around the mountains with tools. Lu Peitian was particularly excited to see half the rotten trees on the edge of the cliff, some old trees that had died by themselves, and "injured" trees that had been bitten by sheep and struck by lightning. He understands that trees, like people, the more experience they have, the more valuable they are to development.

As a result, Lu Peitian's footprint is extending farther and farther. Chengguan, Xunzhen, Lugu, Jiuxian ... Whenever he has time, he rides that motorcycle to Taobao in the mountains. Sophora japonica, Toona sinensis, elm, and even the unique red willow and unknown wild trees in northwest Shanxi are all raw materials for Lu Peitian's root carving. After a long time, he slowly groped for a rule: the more dry and stony the harsh environment, the better the shape of the roots, and the easier it is to find suitable raw materials. Of course, the hard work is correspondingly much more. Hard land and tangled soil are hard bones to chew. Lv Peitian bent down and cleaned up the rubble and soil bit by bit. Sweat ran down his forehead, but he forgot to wipe it and stared straight at the gradually exposed roots. On one occasion, Lu Peitian dug a root shaped like a leopard from the mountain. He put the root of the tree on the ground and turned around it several times. He was too excited to control himself. He sat on the ground, smoked three cigarettes happily, and couldn't help saying, "This is really a treasure given to me by God!" " "This treasure is Lu Peitian's later work The Leopard. In his basement, the author saw this work: a strong tail standing upright, soft and handsome ears, crouching down to hunt food, which is really rare and unforgettable.

Immersed in the art of root carving for many years, Lu Peitian has become an out-and-out "root carving fan". He not only loves carving himself, but also often visits other people's root carving exhibitions in other places, and also visits many famous root carving artists, which has benefited him a lot. In Hequ, he became a famous master of root carving. Some people came to buy his root carving works, some people came to visit his on-site root carving, and some people became his good friends and provided him with some root carving materials. Lu Peitian did not become proud because of people's praise. In his view, the titles of "root carving master" and "root carving artist" are all empty. He faithfully fulfilled his promise to his wife, did not give up his job as a carpenter, but passed on his love for root carving art to his two sons. As adults, both sons dabbled in the art of root carving to varying degrees, especially the eldest son, who not only actively collected good root carving materials for his father, but also carved many works himself.

Lu Peitian took a natural attitude towards his son's hobbies, without stopping or encouraging him. However, sometimes the father and son will still argue about a work. My son likes this, but I insist on that. The end result is often that the son gives in and only uses the semi-finished products abandoned by his father to practice his hands. Lu Peitian is clear about his son's filial piety. He said nothing in his mouth, but his eyes were full of uncontrollable laughter. Lao Lu said that he has been engaged in the art of root carving for 28 years. The most difficult work for him is The Portrait of the Book Sage Wang Xizhi, and the raw materials were found by his son. It was a day last year. Xiao Lu drove to Daixian to deliver goods, and accidentally saw a tree knot with a strange shape and nearly two meters long. As soon as he saw it, he immediately thought of his father who loved root carving, immediately put down his business and brought the cut root back to his father. Lu Peitian was overjoyed when he saw the root of the tree. He stroked the acne skin and said excitedly, "Baby, baby!" " "

This big guy suddenly occupied all Lu Peitian's spare time. After peeling the skin, whenever he is free, he will carry his hand around the tree and turn around, turn around and turn around. His wife scolded him: "I am possessed!" " He also ignored the attention. In those days, Lu Peitian did have some average computer-virus. The food was not delicious, and he didn't sleep well. He looks at people straight, only actions, no expression. Sometimes when I fall asleep in the middle of the night, I just get up and rush to the window to see his precious roots. After three or four months of thinking, Lu Peitian conceived a complete rendering of the work in his mind: Wang Xizhi, a book sage, with a long beard and a solemn expression. He was wearing a undressed belt, and the wind of seclusion came to his face ... After thinking about it, Lu Peitian began to operate. At the age of 65, regardless of his age, he devoted all his time to root carving. This sculpture took nearly half a year. After the work was finished, many root carving enthusiasts came to watch it. This statue of Shu Sheng, which is as high as 155 cm, has won many people's love. If nothing else, those ancient costumes that are layered and drooping make people feel natural. Lu Peitian proudly said: In fact, this root carving takes the greatest effort in conception. In terms of sculpture, it only pays attention to the sculpture above the shoulder, and the following are all natural shapes, which are basically unchanged.

After making root carving for so many years, if you ask Lu Peitian what his most proud work is, he really can't tell. In his basement, the author saw a dazzling array of root carvings. No matter which one you pick up, Lao Lu has endless stories. Just like the child who is not long enough, he was originally carved into a lion, with his head facing the ground and his body running constantly. Later, in a casual look back, he felt that it was more meaningful to look at it from another angle. So, he picked up a knife, slightly modified the carved lion, and became a lovely boy. The child flew forward with open arms and jumped on the paper. His mouth seemed to shout, "Mom, give me a hug!" " "On another occasion, when developing immigrant villages, many trees were knocked down and stumps were everywhere. Lv Peitian found a root that looked like a fox. It took him half a month to carve it into a foraging fox, but he always felt that the fox only had a shape but no god. I can't help staring at it when I'm worried. On the fifteenth night of the first month, Lu Peitian suddenly turned around and found the second half of the fox like a rabbit. He jumped up at once, decisively sawed off half of the sculpture, and turned the fox into a rabbit in a few days. After seeing it, everyone praised it as "what a good rabbit! Even its long ears are so lifelike and lovely!" " "

Walking in the exhibition room for a long time, the author's eyes are almost full of flowers, including "Shouxing", "Jigong", "Guan Yunchang", "Fu Lushou's three stars" and "Family happiness", as well as the long-sleeved ladies of the Tang Dynasty and the lifelike zodiac, each with its own characteristics and full of the power of nature. People all say, "You can't carve rotten wood." Lu Peitian, on the other hand, turned the natural form and beauty of roots into exquisite works of art because of the skill of materials. This requires not only superb carving skills, but also a keen eye for discovering art and beauty! Lu Peitian said that sometimes it is easy to get inspiration and want to start work as soon as you peel the bark. He is now carving a root sculpture called "Blessed Boy", in which a boy rides on a young unicorn and holds a bat (pronounced "blessing") in one hand. The unicorn tail under the boy's crotch is crawling angrily, showing a trend of not jumping, and the folds of the leg skin are clearly visible and very textured. Lv Peitian stroked the pale yellow skin folds with her hand and sighed: "Look at this texture and shape, how beautiful it is!" "

The reporter visited Lu Peitian's basement and watched the root carving works displayed in the Yellow River Kistler Museum. It's really hard to imagine that these natural works of art were carved with a small meat cleaver no more than a foot long. Lu Peitian said: "Most shapes are naturally formed. If you carve them much more artificially, you will lose interest in nature. What I do most is the facial carving of the characters, which is well carved and can play a finishing touch. " He picked up a small triangular meat cleaver and said, "You see, people's eyelids and hair are carved by this little thing." I asked him, "After all these years, do you think your root carving style has changed?" With a straight face, he said seriously, "Of course there have been changes! I didn't understand the true meaning of root carving before, and I only pursued modeling. Now, I already know the pursuit of charm. " He picked up two deer root carvings and told the author that he saw traces of artificial carving in many parts of a deer in his early years, and even installed a leg. In later works, the whole deer body and limbs are natural, and even the thin black tail is a tender branch that is fundamentally necrotic. He can't help but sigh: "The more you learn, the more you feel ignorant! There are still many things to learn, and I still need to accumulate and try. "

Lu Peitian's root carving works have aroused the interest of many merchants, and many people came to him to discuss the purchase of root carving. Lu Peitian said, "I'm just a hobby. I haven't formed an industry yet. How do I sell it? " In fact, in Lao Lu's mind, he treats his works like children, and he is reluctant to sell any of them. Among these works, especially a root carving named "Errentai" has won the special favor of many merchants, but Lu Peitian said with a straight face: "Errentai is a meandering river and is not sold to foreigners!" Everyone laughed and said, "Lao Lu is really strange! People are afraid that things cannot be sold, and he is afraid that people will buy his things! " Later, a friend of Lu Peitian told him that he had opened a "Yellow River Stone Museum" near Gudu, Xikou. It was better to put these root carvings in the museum and sell them at the same time. Lv Peitian thought for a long time and finally agreed. He transported some of his works to the "Yellow River Stone Museum" and won the favor of many merchants.

From 1986 to now, Lv Peitian has gone through 28 years, and the middle-aged man of that year has also become a sprightly little old man. Before 15, Lao Lu was still suffering from diabetes, but his face was red and his voice was loud. You can't tell that he is ill at all. Lao Lu said that root carving is a kind of psychotherapy. As soon as he picks up the meat cleaver and stands in front of the roots, he will feel very comfortable and have no uncomfortable feeling. In his words: "As long as I live, I will make a root carving and enjoy it, so that my life will be meaningful and my life will not be in vain!"