Shanghai people used to go to Wuxi to play and bring back about three things: Huishan clay figurines, sauce pork ribs, and oil gluten workshops | manpower | clay figurines
Huishan clay figurines are an old craft of Wuxi people. Since the Qing Dynasty, there have been professional Huishan clay figurine handicraft workshops in Wuxi, and more than 200 clay figurine workshops have gathered here on the "Clay Street", which uses a type of black mud at the foot of Huishan. Previously, when Shanghai people went to Wuxi to play, they most likely brought back three types of gifts: Huishan clay figurines, sauce pork ribs, and oil gluten.
Later, the transportation became more and more developed. The high-speed railway was like a bus. It was only necessary to take Xiaolongbao sauce ribs to Wuxi. There were fewer opportunities to bring gifts from Wuxi, and Huishan clay figurines seemed to be rare. In 2006, Huishan clay figurines were included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list. However, Huishan clay figurines continue to face problems such as poor sales, personnel turnover, and difficulties in inheriting their skills. In September 2020, the equity of Huishan Clay figurine Factory was adjusted, introducing new private capital, and Huishan Clay figurines embarked on a new round of skill inheritance and industrial revitalization.
In recent years, looking back, Huishan clay figurines have changed a lot - not only have they designed new character images and developed various forms of cultural and creative products such as blind boxes, but they have also integrated with coffee culture to attract young people.
The clay figurine cultural and creative products in the coffee shop.
In order to cater to the preferences and aesthetics of young people, Huishan Clay figurine Factory has re created the most traditional images of "Afu" and "Axi" and adopted more international names - NANI and MOMO. Because Huishan Clay figurines are spoken in Wuxi dialect, the pronunciation is exactly NANIMOMO, and it has been created into a completely new Huishan Clay figurine IP.
Huishan Clay figurine Factory will also combine new character images with local delicacies such as Wuxi sauce pork ribs, peaches, and cherry blossoms. In May 2021, it launched a PVC themed blind box figurine series with a peak monthly sales of tens of thousands of boxes. Nowadays, there are more and more cultural and creative products related to NANIMOMO, such as its laptops, tea cups, coffee cups, and eco-friendly bags, totaling 40 to 50 types.
In some scenic spots such as Nanchang Street and Yuantouzhu in Wuxi, there are NANIMOMO coffee shops. Under the doors and windows of the Jiangnan garden style coffee shops, rows of "Da Afu" are placed, and even the floor and tablecloth colors are the classic "clay figurine red". The shops also have cultural and creative counters, Huishan clay figurine display areas, and areas where on-site professors make clay figurines. The Wuxi municipal government provides special subsidies, and the rent of the shops is more than half of the surrounding prices. At present, the daily customer flow in the store is about 200 people, and it can reach 500 people on weekends and holidays. In Wuxi, 10 coffee shops have been opened successively, distributed in historical and cultural districts, parks, and other places.
For Zhou Hanqing, who is about to retire this year, the cultural and creative products of Huishan clay figurines, especially blind box figurines, are not very suitable. He believes that there are fewer clay figurine elements and more Japanese anime elements, and the production and materials are no longer handcrafted black clay, but 3D printed PVC materials. However, he does not deny that NANI and MOMO are more in line with the aesthetic of young people today. In recent ten years, the Huishan clay figurine market has shrunk due to the impact of anime and popular aesthetics, and the inheritance and promotion of skills have also been affected. Zhou Hanqing told reporters that during the heyday of Huishan Clay figurine Factory, nearly a thousand people created, designed, produced, and sold clay figurines. Now, there are only a few dozen employees in the factory, with only about 20 creative and design personnel. Due to poor sales and low treatment, only 12 out of 10 apprentices recruited from art schools were able to learn. At the age of 16, Zhou Hanqing studied with his father and has been engaged in clay figurine making. He is one of the representative inheritors of Huishan clay figurines and understands that traditional craftsmanship must be innovative.
Zhou Hanqing and the medal he designed.
During this year's Spring Festival, Wuxi held a beautiful life mountaineering festival, and the medals were integrated into the Huishan clay figurine craftsmanship, making it quite beautiful and collectible. The metal part of the medal will be located in the scenic area of Huishan Ancient Town, at the top of Xishan Mountain, and will be integrated with elements such as Wuxi city flowers and azaleas. At the same time, a circular blank area with a diameter of 4.2 centimeters will be left for the Huishan clay figurine. Zhou Hanqing chose the girl figure of "Da Afu" and incorporated green lion elements to control the finished clay figurine within the blank area.
Under various attempts to break through the circle, various orders for Huishan clay figurines have gradually increased since 2020. Many young people and tourists from other places have become curious and concerned about the Huishan clay figurines behind them after buying blind box figurines. Now, Huishan Clay figurine Factory has turned losses into profits, and last year it also recruited four new apprentices born in the 2000s.
