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"Wearing a mask, one becomes a god; taking off the mask, one returns to being human." In Nuo culture, a Nuo Mask allows the performer to seamlessly transition between human and divine roles. Do you know how such a mask is made? Let's follow "Nuo Face Wang" into the mysterious "Nuo world."
Nuo culture is a cultural form in Chinese traditional culture that integrates multiple religions (including primitive nature worship and religion), various folk customs, and multiple arts. It includes Nuo rituals, Nuo customs, Nuo songs, Nuo dances, Nuo operas, Nuo arts, and other items. It is China's oldest, most tenacious, and historically profound oral and intangible cultural heritage.
It originated from the magic and sorcery used to drive away beasts during the ancient hunting era, rooted in the fertile soil of nature worship, totem worship, ancestor worship, ghost and deity worship, and sorcery worship. It began in the ancient Xia and Shang dynasties, formed during the Zhou dynasty, and was standardized by "rituals." In 2006, Nuo opera was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.
Enshi Nuo masks
As the saying goes, there's no Nuo without masks. Nuo masks, as props used in Nuo dances, Nuo sacrifices, and Nuo operas, are an indispensable part of Nuo culture. "Wearing a mask, one becomes a god; taking off the mask, one returns to being human." In Nuo operas, the solemn, arrogant, or fierce Nuo masks help performers complete the role transformation from human to deity.
Now, with three highly representative Enshi Nuo masks entering the World Skills Museum, we can also explore the mysterious "Nuo world" through these distinctively shaped "divine masks."
It is understood that Enshi Nuo masks are mainly divided into three categories: performance, worship, and decorative. Among them, performance Nuo masks are mainly used in Nuo operas. With the change of plays from entertaining gods to entertaining people, the masks include traditional images like Kaishan, Erlang Shen, Tonkou, as well as images like Meng Jiangnu and Guan Gong. Worship Nuo masks are mainly based on the Nuo Gong and Nuo Mu worshipped by the local Tujia people in Enshi, while decorative Nuo masks are artistic exaggerations of traditional Nuo masks, with more aesthetic appeal.
From left to right: Fangxiangshi, Nuo King, and Lei Gong
The three Nuo masks collected by the World Skills Museum are for performance use, namely Fangxiangshi, Nuo King, and Lei Gong, made by Wang Rubin, the inheritor of Nuo mask making in Yamuyu Village, Sancha Town, Enshi City. "These three Nuo masks were chosen for donation because they are all representative in Enshi Nuo culture."
Fangxiangshi was a deity presiding over exorcism and evil-avoiding rituals during the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Wearing a bear skin and having four golden eyes are its characteristics, which is why the mask has two pairs of eyes. It can be said that Fangxiangshi is a typical image that has existed since the origin of Nuo opera. The green-faced Lei Gong is Lei Zhenzi, widely used in Nuo operas, while the more fierce-looking Nuo King well represents the "evil-countering-evil" feature of traditional Enshi Nuo masks. Besides the World Skills Museum, Fangxiangshi and Lei Gong masks have also been collected by the Chinese Arts and Crafts Museum.
— Wang Rubin
Generally, it takes 3 days to make a Nuo mask. It's not easy to create such distinctive and ancient-looking Nuo masks. It requires the maker to have a foundation in both painting and wood carving, as well as strong modeling ability.
"In fact, Nuo masks belong to deep relief and openwork carving. We need to carve both the front and back of the mask to make it fit the human face."
Wang Rubin making Nuo masks
Wang Rubin has summarized ten main processes in making Nuo masks through practice: drafting, material selection, rough carving, fine carving, openwork carving, fine-tuning, polishing, painting, lacquering, and accessory assembly.
"Enshi Nuo masks mainly use local abundant white poplar as raw material. Using local materials is one reason, but more importantly, white poplar has fine texture and is not easily deformed, making it very suitable for making Nuo masks. Besides, we have a local saying that white poplar can ward off evil."
Wang Rubin's Nuo mask works
After material selection comes "rough carving," which Wang Rubin says is the difficult part of the entire process.
"This step requires 'having a thorough plan.' Although the draft has been drawn on the wood, if you don't have a concept of 'how much wood to remove and where to remove it,' the mask might be ruined as soon as you start."
After the general outline is formed, the back of the mask is carved and facial details are refined through fine carving, openwork carving, and fine-tuning. If he wants to enhance the decorative nature of the mask, Wang Rubin will also polish it according to actual needs.
Worship-type Enshi Nuo masks
The subsequent painting and lacquering stages add "color" to the mask. Finally, accessories like beards and eyebrows are attached, and a new Nuo mask is born.
The "lacquer" on Nuo masks is also quite particular. It is understood that the Nuo masks Wang Rubin donated to the World Skills Museum did not use modern chemical paints, but raw lacquer - a pure natural liquid coating harvested from lacquer trees. "When raw lacquer is first applied, it's completely black. As time goes by, the color of the mask will become brighter, and it also has an anti-corrosion effect."
Wang Rubin teaching young people
Since becoming an apprentice to Tan Xuechao, a folk art master and Nuo mask making master in Enshi Prefecture in 1993, Wang Rubin has firmly walked the path of Nuo mask making for nearly 30 years.
Among the 8 people who became apprentices together with him, 4 completed their studies, but now only Wang Rubin is still making Nuo masks. When asked why he could stick to this niche traditional handicraft industry with limited market, Wang Rubin said, "Of course, it's because of love."
Wang Rubin (center) with his master (left) and senior apprentice
When learning from Tan Xuechao, Wang Rubin enjoyed drinking and chatting about Nuo masks with his master, "Many techniques were learned during such casual conversations." Now, because of his obsession with Nuo mask making and the exquisite craftsmanship of his masks, many locals call him "Nuo Face King". Because his surname sounds similar to "Wang" (king), he is also called "Nuo Face Wang".
To better inherit this traditional craft, Wang Rubin has been dedicated to innovating Nuo mask expressions and spreading Nuo mask culture and Nuo culture:
He once went to Fujian to learn painting and to Dongyang to learn wood carving, incorporating what he learned into Nuo mask making;
He responded to the call of "intangible cultural heritage entering campus" and was invited to teach at Enshi Vocational and Technical College. Now there is a month-long Nuo mask making course every semester;
He also cooperates with travel agencies to design Nuo mask making experience activities and develop a series of cultural and creative products;
Opening a heritage center that systematically displays Nuo masks and Nuo culture has always been his wish...
Nuo mask cultural and creative products
This is also his original intention in choosing to donate his works to the World Skills Museum: "I hope they become a key for young people around the world to enter the hall of Nuo culture".
