Shanghai Boxwood Carving | Shanghai Museum of Arts and Crafts (1566)

| Shanghai Museum of Arts and Crafts (1566). At the Shanghai Museum of Arts and Crafts, boxwood carvings are one of the important exhibits, especially the works of master craftsmen. Xu Baoqing, born in 1926, is the founder of the Shanghai-style boxwood carving and a national senior master of arts and crafts. In his more than seventy years of carving career, he created various crafts such as wood carving, ivory carving, horn carving, nut carving, inkstone carving, and bamboo carving. Xu's boxwood carvings cover a wide range of themes, including religious history, children, and rural life. Perhaps due to his childhood experience living and learning at the Tushanwan Orphanage Craft Institute, Xu Baoqing's works are always filled with warmth. He transformed his observations, understanding, and emotions towards people, animals, and even every plant and tree into the beauty under his carving knife, allowing viewers to enjoy the art while holding their breath, making his works very 'watchable.' Works such as 'Harvesting,' 'Blowing Bubbles,' and 'Suffering' are examples. In 2008, Xu Baoqing passed away, and the Shanghai-style boxwood carving he founded was selected as part of the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage.