Hobby of wooden art

Originating from folk beliefs and a lifestyle close to nature, the hobby of playing with wooden handicrafts has appeared in Vietnamese families since ancient times. Nowadays, wooden handicrafts - increasingly creative and unique works of art made from wood, associated with artistic, feng shui and spiritual values, are still a passion pursued by many people...

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Huy displays many unique wooden art works in the living room space.

The living room of Mr. Nguyen Xuan Huy (Tan Long area, Doan Hung town, Doan Hung district) is not used to... receive guests as usual, but is a place for him to respectfully display and cherish dozens of large and small wooden art objects, of various shapes, styles, patterns... Pursuing the hobby of wooden art objects for many years, Mr. Huy is more and more passionate and realizes many interesting things. Wooden objects represent the Wood element, the Wood element symbolizes Spring, displaying wooden objects in the house will bring peace, harmony, and coziness. If wooden furniture is favored for its convenience, luxury, and high durability, wooden art objects are loved for their uniqueness, creativity, and can be used for decoration and contain many feng shui and spiritual elements such as: Maitreya Buddha statue, three-legged toad, four sacred animals gathering, successful horse, sailboat, vase...

“Each wooden handicraft product usually does not have a fixed price, but through the fate as well as the evaluation and playing style of each person, it will have different values. For handicraft products made from precious wood, with strange shapes, the cost to own is not small. There are also works that, in terms of wood value, have nothing, because they are made from mixed wood, from tree stumps in the corner of the yard... but when the artisan "breathes life", carves, and sculpts them, they become unique, have great artistic value, even one-of-a-kind" - Mr. Huy shared.

According to Mr. Huy, people who play with fine art wooden furniture often love burl wood - which is the wound of the tree formed by pests, lightning, cutting... then the tree accumulates nutrients to nourish and heal over many years, forming large lumps and bumps. Burl wood pieces are often of good quality, long-lasting, with colors and natural grain patterns that are more beautiful and unique than the main tree. In the past, burl was considered an excess lump of the tree, which could only be cut off and thrown away. Nowadays, for those who play with fine art wooden furniture, burl wood, especially burl wood of precious trees, is considered a "premium" material, promising to create strange, rare, and unique statues, so it is always attractive to players.

The Maitreya Buddha statue, delicately hand-carved from agarwood, is Mr. Hoang Minh Toan's favorite statue.

Sharing the same passion as Mr. Huy, for Mr. Hoang Minh Toan (Tram Sao area, Gia Cam ward, Viet Tri city), the hobby of collecting wooden handicrafts also helps him regain energy and balance his life. Entering Mr. Toan's house, you will always smell a gentle, relaxing scent. That is the scent from the agarwood statues that Mr. Toan has devotedly collected for many years.

Among them, the statue he loves the most is the Maitreya Buddha statue under a 2.5m tall pine tree, hand-carved, sophisticated, which he painstakingly brought back from Ha Giang. On one side is his extremely hard and busy business. On the other side, his hobby of collecting wooden handicrafts not only brings feng shui value to his family but also gives Mr. Toan more relaxing and calm moments in the midst of his busy life.

“My business travels to many places, giving me the opportunity to explore, discover, and collect fine art wooden products. For me, the joy after a hard day’s work is not only gathering with my family but also admiring and touching my favorite statues. Every time I enjoy and inhale the scent of the wood, pondering the meaning, message, and historical anecdotes in it to realize the soul and spirit of the statue, all my fatigue seems to disappear.”

Phan Uyen

Source: https://baophutho.vn/thu-choi-do-go-my-nghe-222406.htm