short series

Little Fubao Wows the 1980s with Clay Sculptures

share time: 2025-10-09 12:30:28

In the late 1980s, Xiao Fubao, a rural girl, learned from her grandfather to make clay sculptures so vivid they seemed alive. To raise money for her critically ill grandfather, she took her clay dolls to the city to sell, only to be mocked as “too rustic” and chased by urban management. Until an art college professor passed by and was stunned by her series “Kitchen Fireworks”—rough clay figures of a grandma kneading dough, a kid stealing candy, even a teapot that looked like it was steaming. When the series was exhibited at the National Folk Art Exhibition, the clay dolls under warm light seemed ready to jump out of the display case, moving the audience to tears: the most touching art always comes from everyday life. Xiao Fubao didn’t have much education, but with her hands, she turned rural mud into “talking memories.” She not only saved her grandfather but also reignited the nearly lost clay sculpture craft, making it popular again in the 1980s streets...

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