A mission to preserve traditional woodworking

"Each article embodies something that has been passed down throughout history," says Wang. "When they are presented systematically with illustration of their origins and evolvement, it's easier for people to understand their cultural value."

Wang's career as a carpenter started in the late 1980s when he traveled from his hometown in Wuyi county, Hebei province, to Beijing to become an apprentice in furniture restoration.

He was initially apprehensive about the job because he feared that he would be looked down upon by others for being a woodworker. But his passion for the craft was born after he witnessed the beauty of traditional joinery techniques that can create a perfect fit without the use of any bindings, fasteners and glues.

"Our predecessors only use wood elements to make a strong joint that is really difficult to be disassembled. That sparked my curiosity in the techniques and birthed my respect for the craft," explains Wang.

He then started to hone his skills by making reproductions of rare wood artworks that he saw in well-known gardens in Beijing such as Beihai Park and the Sum-mer Palace. He once crafted a 50-centimeter-high arched niche for a Buddha statue and sold it at a price of 240 yuan, which was a considerable sum of money for the young man in the early 1990s. This incident spurred him to persevere with his craft, and there were times when he would spend an entire day just sketching an art piece that he wanted to reproduce. He soon made enough money from his creations and started his own furniture restoration business.

As the business expanded, his expertise as a wood antique restorer became known among many collectors. He even started getting customers from abroad.