Lacquer masters apply historic touch

Both Gan and Cai have endeavored to keep the craft alive in modern life.

Gan has collaborated with luxury brands to integrate lacquerwork with new materials and designs. For example, he applied the xipi qi coating to part of a chair made of carbon fiber and a rosewood table to render "both classical and modern feelings".

In the twilight of his life, Cai was devoted to cultivating the younger generation of lacquerers in his family while holding workshops and lectures at schools to popularize the craft. "It is my mission to inherit (the craft). It is my job to pass it on to the next generation, which is far more important than making money," he once said.

Yang Peizhang from Tsinghua University says that aesthetics have evolved and will continue to transform, and however artistry is defined, the life of lacquerwork is first grounded on the well-preserved techniques passed down and based on artists developing new techniques to carry the tradition forward.