Cloisonne, made in China with pride(2)

The third processes: coloring. [Photo/the Beijing Evening News]

During the Anti-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945, enamel production stopped, resuming with the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

In 1951, Tsinghua University established an arts and crafts group to rescue cloisonne. Seven years later, the local government set up a training school to cultivate arts and crafts specialists.In 1956, then government-owned Beijing Enamel Factory was set up, taking in 42 private workshops.

During the 1960s, arts graduate were dispatched to the enamel production industry, making a great contribution to its development and revival.

Cloisonne products were exported to Europe, North America, and Arabic countries. "People in these regions show extraordinary interest in this Chinese traditional art," Wang says.

"As Chinese people like to express their emotions through euphemism, patterns of animals and plants are applied. For example, the peony represents rich life and mandarin ducks symbolize enduring love.

"Some consumers complain about poor quality of 'Made in China' products," Wang says, "but I think it's because they never see authentic Chinese products such as cloisonne."

The golden age of sales was in the 1980s when the country's reform and opening up policy was just unfolding and annual sales reached 50 million yuan.

But with the spread of foreign cultures among the youth, cloisonne almost ended again in the 1990s, Wang recalls.

In this tough time, the factory produced the gifts that Beijing's municipal government sent to Hong Kong Special Administrative Region when it returned to China in 1997.

The copper body was decorated with flower emblems of both cities - the peony and bauhinia.

To revitalize production, the factory became a limited company in 2002, and four years later, the craft of cloisonne was listed as a national Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Now the firm has a range of 800 products priced from 200 yuan to more than 3 million yuan.

During the APEC Leaders' Week last year, cloisonne vases named "Sihaishengping", meaning "peace in the world", were presented as state gifts to the 20 leaders.

Lu and the other craftspeople are proud to have been involved in such prestigious gifts, but he still worries the craft will be lost to future generations.

"In this industry, designers should have many opportunities to become 'masters' with great reputations and wealth," Lu says. "Craftsmen like me have not been treated fairly even though we are the key part of a perfect cloisonne vase."

Cloisonne crafts are suffering a talent drain. In response, the company has employed more than 30 deaf and mute workers.

"They fulfill the work's basic requirements of sitting still for hours," Wang says, "while we give them employment."

"You may think the price of cloisonne is too high," he says, "but it is earned."