The Tao of Turquoise Carving

Photos by Zou Bin

With its pine-cone shape and distinctive blue-green colour,the history of turquoise can be traced back to the legend of Empress Nüwa,who melted stones to mend the sky at the beginning of time.As a symbol of warmth and vitality since thousands of years ago,turquoise has been prized as one of the four most famous jades in China owing to its unique hue.

A local resident of Caojiawan Village,Baofeng Town,Zhushan County in the upper reaches of the Han River,Cao Hongxing as a child heard of the story of the Tibetans who came back home with gems from thousands of miles away,which were then hidden in the mountains around their village.

Childhood seemingly flew by in an instant,like a soaring bird that disappears behind a mountain ridge before anyone could catch a glimpse of it.As he grew up,Cao traveled extensively,always thirsting for the next adventure,and doing a host of part-time jobs,such as selling vegetables and doing odd jobs to eke out a living.

In his 20s,Cao heard that a relative was running a crystal processing factory in Huidong County of Guangdong Province.He decided to have a go at it and learn the tricks of the trade.Starting from small tasks like washing stones,over ten years of dedicated work,he eventually became the best carver of the factory.

Sculpting and polishing a turquoise trinket灯下精雕细琢

从“女娲炼石补天”的传说，到跻身中国“四大名玉”之列，“形似松球，色如松绿”的绿松石，那或湛蓝或青绿或菜黄的颜色，几千年来带给人们以温润和生机的期待。

家住中国汉江上游的竹山县宝丰镇曹家湾村的曹红星，小时候就听老人说过，藏民千里迢迢而来，把宝石带回西藏的故事，那些被采集的宝石，就藏在他们村口的大山之中。

童年如山头的一只飞鸟，转瞬即逝。年轻时的曹红星，走南闯北，心性不定，卖过菜，搬过砖，四处打零工，没有固定工作。

听说有亲戚在广东惠东县，经营一家水晶加工厂，20 多岁的曹红星决定南下学艺。从洗石头做起，10年时间他炼成厂里手艺最好的雕工。

当时，绿松石在国内玉石市场逐渐受宠，一次曹红星回老家过年，顺便低价收购了一批绿松石，到广东以10 倍的价格卖出。

2009年，曹红星回到宝丰镇时，绿松石原矿无人加工，都是直接低价发往外地。而曹红星的雕刻作坊里，各种精美绿松石雕件，吸引了外地货商们来高价竞拍。

玉不琢，不成器。绿松石雕刻，要经过选料、去皮、画图、精雕、抛光等一系列流程。而选料如赌石，10年前曹红星贷款38000 元，从矿区买下的一袋籽料精品，如今暴涨了100 倍。

醉心绿松石雕刻十多年，曹红星多次获得国内玉雕大奖，2016年还获评“湖北省青年玉石雕艺术家”。驱车到几公里外的女娲山上寻觅创作灵感，下到几十米深的矿井拍一段科普视频，在家和儿子聊聊雕刻技巧，成为他工作之余的乐趣。

名利之外，他也扪心自问：绿松石雕刻如何独树一帜？“男戴观音女戴佛，貔貅金蟾招财兽”，这些传统玉石消费文化的强劲力量，紧紧摁住了绿松石雕刻艺术创新的咽喉。女娲之石的传说、尊凤尚赤的荆楚元素，如何交融进这块绿色的湖北宝玉里，留给后人更多文化遗产？

曹红星陷入了沉思。

Looking for inspiration for creation in an ancient building在古建筑中寻找创作灵感

Selecting raw turquoises with his wife和妻子一起挑选原石

At that time turquoise was gradually gaining popularity in the domestic jade market.Once,Cao went back home to spend the Spring Festival holiday and came across a batch of turquoise ore.He purchased it at a low price and sold it in Guangdong at 10 times the price.

Cao returned to Baofeng Town permanently in 2009.Back then,unprocessed turquoise ore was usually sold directly to other provinces at low prices.Naturally,the fine and exquisite turquoise carvings displayed in Cao’s workshop attracted merchants from all over the country,who bid against each other and raised their prices.

Only by cutting and carving can jade carvings be fashioned out of raw ore.Turquoise carving requires a series of processes such as ore selection,slabbing,designing,carving,and polishing.The selection of the ore itself is somewhat of a gamble.Ten years ago,Cao borrowed 38,000 yuan to buy a bag of fine ore,the price of which has now skyrocketed 100 times.

Having engaged in turquoise carving for more than a decade,Cao has won many domestic awards for his jade carvings.In 2016,he won the honorary title of “Best Young Jade Sculptor in Hubei Province.” In his spare time,he enjoys driving to Nüwa Mountain a few kilometers away to search for inspiration,going deep down a mine to film a science video,and chatting with his son about carving skills.

Examining turquoise ore in a mine pit下井研究矿脉

Despite fame and fortune,he always comes back to the same old question:What can he do to make his turquoise work unique? Traditional jade culture advocates ideas like,“Men should wear a Kwanyin pendant,while women should wear a Buddha one.The mythical winged lion,Pixiu and golden toads attract fortune,” which in some sense retards innovations on turquoise carving art.So,how can he build the legend of Nüwa’s Stone and local features of worshiping the phoenix and the redness into this green gemstone of Hubei Province,and leave worthy cultural heritage behind?

Cao never stops thinking and exploring.(Translation:Lu Qiongyao)

Meticulous Polishing and Refining细细雕琢

Cao Hongxing enjoying his works对自己的作品爱不释手