If you traveled to China you probably noticed that Chinese love adorable
and sweet things such as cute characters or
designs. The obsession with cute is actually not only Chinese, but more in
general it`s an East Asian phenomenon, and not just young girls, but adults
too, are affected.
The Chinese term
for cute is “ke’ai” (可爱), which
literally means “lovable” or “adorable”, and is used to describe anything that
is diminutive, for example, all children can be described as ke`ai, as well as
small animals and inanimate objects. The innocence of childhood and small
creatures certainly has a beauty of its own. Perhaps ke`ai is so popular
because people yearn for a return to those days of sweet innocence.
Looking at
ancient arts and crafts objects I came to believe that the Chinese people`s fondness
for ke’ai it`s not only a 21st century fashion trend, but it has a very long history.
Porcelain, paper cuts, carvings, embroideries, woodblock prints, cute
dolls... For thousands of years the ancestors of today's Chinese created fine
art forms, many adorably small in size and perfect in every detail.
Here’s my small collection of ke`ai craft objects gathered browsing museums and crafts shops, enjoy!
A world in miniature
The pictures below show the details of an ivory carving depicting one of the most famous Chinese love story "The Romance of The West Chamber", displayed at the Shanghai Arts and Crafts Museum.
The beauty of
youth and innocence
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| Boys playing on turtle - wood carving |
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| Boys playing - wood carving |
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| Boys playing with fireworks - detail of porcelain vase |
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Little girl wearing a tiger hat and holding a red lantern
Wuxi clay figurine |
Round is cute
Chinese Buddhist deities are often depicted as a laughing (bald) man with a largely exposed belly to symbolize happiness and good luck.
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| Laughing Buddha - Jade Carving |
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| Eight Gods of Wealth - Olive Pit Carving |
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| Da A Fu, deities guardians of Huishan - Wuxi Clay Figurines |
The charm of animals
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| Little chicks - embroidery |
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| Rabbits - painted wall scroll |
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| Frog on a lotus flower - Clay pot |
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| Tiger Hats, traditionally worn by children as protection from evil |
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| Chick breaking through eggshell - Jade Carving |
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