Phu Khe Woodcarving Masterpiece

Phu Quy was once a commune of Tucson town, Bac Ninh province. It is now a ward of the beautiful Tucson city. Phu Quy ward lies to the north, 4 kilometers from Tucson center along provincial route 271. The ward covers over 304 hectares and has a population of more than 10,000. With its favorable location and convenient connection to Hanoi, Phu Quy has great potential for economic exchange and socio-economic development. Most notably, its traditional fine art furniture craft. Phu Quy is also the birthplace of General Secretary Nguyen Van Cuu, an outstanding leader of the Communist Party of Vietnam from 1938 to 1940. The ward is home to many provincial and national-level historical and cultural sites, including the memorial to General Secretary Nguyen Van Cuu, the Lu family ancestral hall, and the Hien Nguyen family ancestral halls in Dong and Thuan quarters. This is a land of great spiritual and human potential, a homeland with a long revolutionary tradition, and a source of great honor and pride for the party committee, authorities, and people of Phu Quy throughout its development. During the nation's revolutionary struggles, Phu Quy made major contributions in manpower and resources to the resistance against France and United States and to northern border defense. Thousands of Phu Quy youths went off to fight and win glory. That heroic revolutionary spirit has driven Phu Quy's development to this day. In step with the country's socio-economic development, Phu Quy has undergone remarkable changes in recent years. Residents' living standards continue to improve. The economic structure is shifting positively, with agriculture declining and non-agricultural sectors growing. Alongside traditional farming, over 75 percent of households now work in woodworking. Fine art furniture production employs many workers, including older people who can still work. Since ancient times, people in Phu Quy and nearby areas have recited, rice cakes and millet porridge, fine tools and roof tiles, Phu Quy carves dragons. Today, Phu Quy has very little agricultural land left. As a result, household incomes mainly come from fine art furniture production. This involves many related activities. A range of services has grown around the craft. There are also suppliers of materials and a large workforce. Handicraft production requires many workers. It has therefore created many jobs for local people and households and substantially increased their incomes. The local economy has largely grown through craft production in recent years. According to village elders, the village was founded when King and Duong Bang built Koloa Citadel. Later, under King Lai Thai Tu, the craft was brought to Tang Long. At that time, the demand for palaces and citadels was immense. Skilled artisans from many places gathered in Phu Quy, gradually forming the renowned carving village known today. According to legend, the ancestor of woodworking was Lu Ban. Since ancient times, local people have maintained the custom of worshiping the craft ancestor. Every year, before the seventh day of the first lunar month, the Quang Khan Artisan Guild meets to prepare for the ritual ceremony. Offerings include chicken sticky rice, fruit, incense, and candles. Every craft family's household must contribute. On the seventh day, the Guild comes to worship the craft ancestor. Phu Quy artisans' ancestor worship honors those who taught the craft. While strengthening community ties, solidarity, and mutual support to preserve and develop the trade. In Phu Quy, the craft is passed from parent to child, generation after generation, producing many renowned artisans at home and abroad. I have never heard of another province with Phu Quy's custom of worshiping the woodcraft ancestor. We in Bac Ninh are very proud that only Phu Quy preserves this tradition. In 2016, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism awarded us a certificate recognizing Phu Quy's craft as part of Vietnam's intangible cultural heritage. In producing Phu Quy fine art furniture, the craftmaster first needs an idea for the item to be made and must express it in a drawing, creating the product design. Next, the right type of wood must be selected for the intended item. The wood is marked and sawn into boards of varying thicknesses. Next, carpenters shape the wood by sawing, cutting, chiseling, and planing, then assemble it with jigs into the product's form. For example, a nest, a bed, or a table and chair set. If the product includes carved or turned parts, carvers or turners are assigned to make them. The carpenters and carvers then coordinate closely, assembling and finishing the completed product. Using scrapers and files to smooth curves and sharp bends, they secure the parts with alcohol, glue, or lacquer. The final stage is handled by finishers who wax, varnish, or spray paint the products. Throughout this production process, woodworkers create practical product forms. Carvers, meanwhile, focus on beauty and artistic value. Carving itself involves several stages. First comes the concept and motif design. The four divine creatures are the dragon, shilan, tortoise, and phoenix. The four seasons feature pine, bamboo, chrysanthemum, and apricot. Next, the carver lays out the design on the unfinished piece, removes the background, raises the motif, and begins carving. Techniques include relief, perforated, recessed, and openwork carving. The work involves chiseling, trimming, scraping, and refining every detail. The artistic quality of the carving depends entirely on experience and the carver's skilled hands. Under the hands of Fuki's carvers, mythical dragons and phoenixes come alive beside peaceful folk scenes. I've been in this trade for nearly 45 years. Anyone who wants to master it must go through many stages, with patience and love for the craft. Even now, I have not mastered it, there is still much more to learn. Fuki's products today have distinctive features unlike those of other places. They show refined craftsmanship and a high level of artistry. In Fuki, the finest work comes from the dong carving tradition. Whether western floral designs or traditional motifs, each has its own character, but dong carving remains the most renowned. Fuki's dragons, like those made elsewhere, have their own distinctive features. It identifies whether a dragon dates from the Lai or Lu dynasty. It shows whether the dragon belonged to the king, the people, or an official. Each style has its own beauty and rules, such as the number of claws on a royal dragon. Official dragons follow different rules and details. Distinguishing them requires the artisan to understand these traditions. Only then can every detail be rendered accurately and beautifully for each period. Fuki's woodcraft has a long history and has reached a high level of artistic refinement. It includes building homes, making communal houses and pagodas, household goods, and worship items, as well as statues and paintings in many genres and themes. During the Lu-Trung-Hung period, in the 17th and 18th centuries, Fuki woodcarving flourished. It contributed to renowned works such as Din Bang Communal House, Diem Communal House, Bat That Pagoda, Tay Phuong Pagoda, and Vinh Nghiem Pagoda. During the resistance against France and the collectivization period, Fuki woodcarving temporarily declined. Since national renewal began in the 1990s, the craft has flourished again. Its products are popular nationwide and exported to many countries.