A black slate (石板), an alloy steel needle and decades of practice are what Li Yahua needs to create the perfect Huihe stone shadow carving work of art. With her left hand (gentle) leaning against the mirror-like stone to support the heavy chisel (凿子) she's holding in her right hand, the artist creates a black-and-white landscape by intensively chiseling dots in various sizes and density on the stone.
Different from traditional Chinses art types that emphasize the beauty of lines, stone shadow carving highlights the size and (deep) of dots. "We use an alloy steel needle to chisel white dots to create image on a polished and smooth black slate," Li explained, adding the pressure (use) to chisel them was the key to getting the carving right. "On an A-paper-size black slate, we need to chisel about million dots (create) an image," she continued, adding it would take to days to complete the work depending on its level of complexity. Born into a family of stone carves, stone and alloy steel needles (be) Li's best friends since childhood and the sound of chisel (knock) on the slate is the soundtrack to her life. -year old has devoted nearly years to the craft, which made someone laugh at the (absurd) of the situation. For her, shadow curving is about preserving history, culture and art, recording the stories of the times. "It is vital that we should be prepared twists and turns." She said.
