Guanpu Oil Fan 官埔油扇

趙潤(rùn)心

This year I tried making Guanpu oil fan， a unique folk art in Fu'an， Fuji- an. With the necessary materials， I began my work under the guidance of a master craftsman. First， I put a thin strip （） through a small hole drilled on each side of the bamboo joints （） above the handle of the fan， which is regarded as the "shoulder of the fan". Then I connected the ends and middle parts of the bamboo strips together with thin threads， which were fixed at both ends of the shoulder to form a circular "nest"， a frame （） of an oil fan. Afterwards， I used cotton paper to mount the fans. Meanwhile I flattened （修平） the surface and bottom of the fan with a dry brush. After drying the fan， it was necessary to trim （修） the appearance with sharp scissors to form the prototype of a fan.

It was time to display my talent for art. Some minutes later， my favorite cartoon characters came to life on the fans. After oiled and dried， my Guan- pu oil fan truly came into shape， smile shining on my face. I felt happy that I learned a new skill.