Culture of Clay

　　Over 180 years ago， a craftsman named ZhangMingshan came to prominence in north China’s Tianjinfor his colorful clay figurines. Zhang’s work becameso celebrated that he gained favor from the royal familyof the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)， who decided todecorate the royal palace with his work. At the time，the best craftsmen in the country were sponsoredby the stateand separated from the business world，so throughout his life most of Zhang’s pieces went tothe palace or to friends； few were sold for profit.

　　But in today’s China， Zhang’s successors， whoinherited his techniques as well as the renownedbrand named after him， Clay Figure Zhang， must takebusiness as a primary concern and find a place fortheir 100-year-old business in the world’s fastestdeveloping economy.

　　Findings of the third national survey on culturalheritage， conducted from 2007 to 2011， show thatChina is home to around 870，000 intangible culturalheritages which include folk music， drama， skills andcrafts. The survey states that up to 2010， the governmentsat all levels had invested 1.8 billion yuan ($300million) in preservation. Despite this massive sum，many of China’s cultural heritages， like the Clay FigureZhang brand， struggle to survive.

　　Tricky balance

　　For the Clay Figure Zhang brand， the hardest timewas in the 1980s， when its store was rarely visitedand had to eke out an existence through selling toysand costumes. This experience was dramatic butby no means exclusive. At the time， many folk arttroupes and studios endured similar dilemmas， withsome still scrambling for revenue today. Few talentedyouth would like to devote their life to an art so out offashion and unprofitable， so traditional techniques arefading without enthusiastic successors.

　　In recent years， some scholars have argued thatthe future of folk arts and cultural heritages lies inindustrialization， which could help craftsmen and artistsstand on their own feet. On the other hand， manycritics argue that adding a commercial touch wouldruin the long-cherished arts.

　　While the debate rages， some cultural heritagebusinesses have managed to scrape by. Clay FigureZhang， for instance， now runs three stores with anannual sales revenue of 12 million yuan ($2 million).

　　Zhang Yusheng， an artist who has worked at ClayFigure Zhang for 35 years， believes that the key tosuccess is to reach a delicate balance between art andbusiness.

　　Zhang attributed the slump in the history of ClayFigure Zhang to a misunderstanding of businessprinciples.

　　“At that time， we believed that art should servebusiness， the more copies of old designs we made，the more successful business we can achieve，” Zhangsaid. “But all art professionals should know that thetruth is the opposite： the more you create， the betteryour business gets.”

　　Occupied with repeating and copying， the artistswere left no time or space to think and create valuablenew ideas and artwork.

　　“What we produced [felt] just like fast food， butwhat the market needs is the products with moreinside. When art serves business only， it will finallylose the market，” Zhang said.

　　Today， the studio adopts a relaxed working style.The artists on staff are given more space towork on their own designs. Their delicateartistic works are offered to high-spenderswhile stores catering to tourists arestocked with affordable clay figurines ofmass production.

　　Branding

　　Complicating matters for businessesinvolved in the cultural heritage industryis that they need to worry about morethan just their own development. Wellrespectedhistorical brands attract a lotof knock-off manufacturers and individualcopycats， mostly assembled in thesouvenir stores in tourism spots. This can lead to anegative first impression for people from all aroundthe country and abroad who encounter these fakeartworks and are duped into thinking the real onesare just as shoddy.

　　According to Zhang， there are more than 10factories in Tianjin producing low-quality reproductionsof Clay Figure Zhang works. But he understandswhy they exist and even sees them as necessary. “Itmay affect our reputation. But when we still needto make ourselves known by more people， at somedegree they might be helpful. The target market offolk culture is still quite small. We cannot rely on thehigh-spenders alone to influence mass market.”

　　He believes that time is needed for traditional artsto explore the market and for the inferior or shoddyproducts to be washed out. During the process， artistswill feel encouraged to be more creative in orderto keep their work distinct from mass produced ones.

　　Although the Clay Figure Zhang brand is generallylenient toward reproduction， it is vigilant in protectingits brand value as demonstrated by a seven-yearlegal struggle. In 2005， Zhang Mingshan’s Clay FigureZhang based in Tianjin sued Zhang Tiecheng， afamous craftsman based in Beijing who has run andregistered his business under the Clay Figure Zhangname and has become well-known for it by locals.

　　The case was extremely bitter and drew greatattention due to the fame of the 100-year-old ClayFigure Zhang brand. Finally， the courts decided infavor of Zhang Mingshan， and the original Clay FigureZhang finally won its name back on February 28，2012.

　　In September 2013， Clay Figure Zhang held anexhibition in the National Art Museum of China basedin Beijing， six decades after it last staged an exhibitionthere in the 1960s.