Gu Yeliang, an inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of Qinhuai Lantern craftsmanship in Nanjing, has been promoting Qinhuai Lantern culture and products to more than 40 countries to date.
In the 1980s, Gu became an apprentice to learn traditional lantern-making skills from well-known lantern craftsmen, including Li Guisheng.
Gu fully understands that it is important to make innovations to carry forward traditional cultural heritage. He once signed a contract with the Confucius Temple Artistic Lantern Factory in Nanjing to run the factory in an industrialized way instead of the traditional method of individual workshops. He also improved the lantern-making processes for the lantern’s framework, including using iron wire, silk and a light bulb to replace the bamboo strip, paper and candle, respectively.
By affiliating with China’s well-known “Qinhuai Lantern Festival” brand, Gu held large lantern festivals to publicize Qinhuai Lantern culture. He also gave courses at many schools in Nanjing on lantern-making skills to promote the traditional craftsmanship among young people.
Gu is also dedicating himself to disseminating Qinhuai Lantern culture in the world and has traveled to more than 40 countries to date by taking part in cultural fairs in other countries. All the lanterns he brought to each fair abroad were sold out.
