"Breathing life" into driftwood

Through his skillful hands, artistic talent, and rich imagination, woodcarver Hoang Van Kien has "breathed life" into rough, lifeless tree stumps and pieces of wood, transforming them into unique products of high artistic value. These art pieces crafted from driftwood are gradually gaining a foothold in the market and are favored by many customers.

Mr. Kien (on the right) completes the artwork "Happy Couple" for a customer.

Starting a business from passion

One winter day, as I was driving along Nguyen Tat Thanh Street in Van Phu Ward, Viet Tri City, I came across a group of craftsmen busily sanding a set of tables and chairs made from gnarled tree trunks. Their work clothes were covered in wood dust, and their faces were completely covered by masks, making it impossible to tell who was the owner and who was the worker. Seeing a visitor, Mr. Hoang Van Kien, the owner of the wood carving workshop, brushed off the dust from his clothes and temporarily removed his mask to invite me in for a drink.

Every year, Kien's workshop brings hundreds of unique carved products to the market.

Over a cup of hot tea, Mr. Kien shared his passion for a profession that not everyone can pursue. Born in 1985 into a farming family in Hai Luu commune, Song Lo district, Vinh Phuc province, after graduating from the Central Technical School for Wood Processing Workers (now the College of Technology, Economics and Forestry Processing) – the cradle of specialized wood processing vocational training and the largest-scale training center for technical wood processing workers in the agriculture and rural development sector of the country – Mr. Kien did not return to his hometown to start a business but instead ventured from North to South. He worked for wood processing workshops in Kon Tum and Ha Giang provinces – places where wood processing and wood carving are well-developed. With formal training and nearly a decade of practical experience, he learned a great deal, interacted with many skilled craftsmen, and thus improved his skills and accumulated experience. Determined to pursue his craft, in 2015 Kien decided to leave Ha Giang and move to Viet Tri city to start his own wood carving workshop, instead of returning to his hometown of Song Lo, Vinh Phuc. He reasoned that wood carvings primarily cater to affluent customers with refined tastes, making Viet Tri city the ideal location for his workshop.

Kien recounted the early days of opening his woodworking workshop: “With the support of my family, I opened a woodworking workshop in a prime location near a main road, but in the beginning, the workshop had few customers. Partly because customers were unaware of my products and the true value of wood carvings. Even so, I didn't give up. I created my own works, from the smallest pieces like statues of famous figures to larger products like wooden paintings, with exquisite, sharp, and soulful carvings. Gradually, art lovers spread the word, and more and more people came to the workshop to buy my products.”

Wood carving is a high-end handicraft. Besides skillful hands and creativity, the craft requires perseverance and genuine passion. When learning the trade, in addition to basic techniques, the craftsman must cultivate their imagination to create and sketch designs from their thoughts. According to Mr. Kien, although both involve creating with wood, wood carving differs from general carpentry in that it demands greater perseverance, skill, meticulousness, creativity, and artistic flair. While general carpentry can use machinery to mass-produce identical products, each artistic sculpture is almost entirely handcrafted and unique.

From tree stumps, trunks, and roots, the craftsman creates products based on the shape, color, wood grain, or even the rough texture of each piece of wood. This results in vivid details that reflect the rich culture of Vietnam. Therefore, even with the same size, shape, or wood material, the beauty and "soul" of each piece crafted by Mr. Kien are unique; no two pieces are alike.

The technique of carving relief requires skill and meticulous attention to detail to create unique works of art.

The craftsman meticulously carves each small detail onto the product by hand.

Market expansion

The artistic wood carvings created by Mr. Kien feature familiar images close to the lives of Vietnamese people, such as Buddha statues, statues of the deities of fortune, prosperity, and longevity, statues of the 12 zodiac animals, and rural landscape paintings. Each piece costs from a few million to tens of millions of dong, or even hundreds of millions of dong, depending on the type of wood, size, and the complexity of the work. After 20 years in the profession, his wood carving workshop has earned the trust of its customers. From seemingly discarded tree trunks and roots, through his skillful hands, they are given unique shapes and spirits, elevating the value of the wood to a level highly appreciated by customers. Currently, the workshop receives 10-15 orders per month from customers both within and outside the province.

While skillfully polishing the "Happy Couple" sculpture after a month of work, Mr. Kien explained that creating a sculpture involves four stages: conceptualization, carving and shaping, detailing, and finally polishing. He emphasized that conceptualization is the most important. Besides basic techniques, the craftsman must learn to draw to understand how to create shapes and sketch the major lines as well as the smallest details of each piece. Therefore, the wood selection must be meticulous; it must be of good quality, resistant to warping, flexible, durable, crack-free, and free from termites and woodworms.

Deeply impressed by the artwork "Happy Couple" that Mr. Kien is currently completing, Mr. Hoang Viet Cuong, a customer, shared: "During a business trip, I accidentally bought a rough piece of driftwood in Son La for 2.5 million VND from a local villager, so I brought it back to have a craftsman work on it. When I was brainstorming with Mr. Kien about this piece of wood, I thought it would be similar to the familiar sample artworks I see online. But when I saw and touched each intricately carved detail, I was very satisfied. 'Happy Couple' is a powerful symbol of the perfect happiness of a couple. This beautiful and harmonious artwork, beyond my expectations, will bring happiness, luck, wealth, and prosperity to my family in the upcoming Year of the Snake."

Thanks to his intelligence and quick wit, the beautiful and unique works of art crafted by Kien, who possesses nine fingerprints, are becoming increasingly well-known. His woodworking workshop attracts many people to learn the craft and practice it. Some, after receiving his hands-on training, have opened their own businesses, becoming "satellite" workshops. Each year, his workshop produces hundreds of handcrafted wooden products, providing stable employment for 3-5 workers with salaries ranging from 15-17 million VND per person per month.

Sharing his plans for the future, Mr. Kien said: “Previously, I simply thought that if I did a good job and produced beautiful products, word of mouth would naturally spread. But in this digital age, I have to change my approach and expand my market. Therefore, I plan to open a showroom to display and introduce my products and continue to expand my handicraft carving workshop to further develop the craft, while also continuing to train and create jobs for more workers who are passionate about the profession.”

With the entrepreneurial spirit and daring spirit of Mr. Hoang Van Kien, we believe that the fine art wood carving workshop he owns will continue to develop, contributing to creating jobs for many local workers and producing many works of art that beautify life.

Hong Nhung

Source: https://baophutho.vn/thoi-hon-cho-go-lua-225838.htm