On July 15, 2024, a folk art and cultural activity with profound significance and far-reaching impact was grandly held at the Tenglin Left-behind Children's Care Home in Huaqiao Town, Yujiang District. The event attracted 35 left-behind children and more than 10 volunteer teachers, and this magical journey of exploration was like a bright light, illuminating the children's spiritual world of thirst for knowledge and exploration. It is not only a display of folk culture, but also an enlightenment of the soul.
Yang Zhi, secretary of the Party branch of the Children's Home, as the inheritor of the candy-blowing skills, specially invited his master, Mr. Yang Pengcheng, to come to the scene. At the beginning of the event, Mr. Yang Pengcheng showed his exquisite candy blowing skills, and his skillful techniques and wonderful sugar art changes instantly attracted all the attention of the children.
Immediately afterwards, Mr. Yang Zhi introduced the cultural value and long-standing history of candy blowing art in simple terms. In the Q&A session, Mr. Yang Zhi carefully prepared many questions, such as when and where the art of blowing candy originated, and what kind of development and changes it has undergone. The children's minds were active and they were eager to answer, and the atmosphere was warm and extraordinary. Through this session, the children's understanding of the art of blowing candy was deepened.
Teacher Yang Zhi was making candy blowing works while explaining in detail. He not only details the unique form of each work, but also speaks fondly about the rich cultural connotations and long historical origins behind them. He mentioned that the art of blowing candy was born more than 600 years ago, and its origin has a legendary story with Liu Bowen, the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty. Legend has it that in order to pass on the throne from generation to generation, Zhu Yuanzhang built the "Meritorious Pavilion" to burn the heroes, Liu Bowen escaped by luck and was rescued by an old man who picked the burden of a candy man, and the two changed clothes. This is the beginning of the journey of inheriting this unique skill. And Mr. Yang Pengcheng's father is also a faithful inheritor of the culture of blowing sugar, and now this precious skill has been passed down to Yang Zhi's generation.
In the course of the activity, Mr. Yang Zhi skillfully played out vivid animals, made exquisite objects such as the red tassel gun, Sun Wukong's golden hoop stick, as well as a variety of exotic flowers and plants, and smart birds and beasts. The children were deeply impressed by this amazing skill, and the exclamations came one after another.
In order to further deepen the children's understanding of the candy blowing culture, Mr. Yang Zhi also actively interacted with the children in the form of prize quizzes. Several students sincerely said that through this activity, they really felt the extraordinary wisdom of their ancestors, and they were full of reverence for the predecessors who could create such exquisite skills in ancient times. As children of the new era, they solemnly promise to pass on the relay of folk art and culture, and believe that one day they will be able to take over the torch in the hands of Teacher Yang Zhi.
Towards the end of the activity, Yang Zhi summarized the event and put forward high expectations for the children. He said that in the future, he will bring this precious folk art and culture to every school to preach and carry out experiential activities, so that more children can feel its charm, so as to inherit and carry forward this cultural treasure.
This activity not only allowed the children to experience the charming charm of folk art and culture, but also planted the seeds of inheritance in their hearts, injecting vitality and infinite hope into the inheritance and innovation of folk art and culture.