Huang Qicai with one of his favorite works, Dragon Head, at his studio in a southern suburb of Taiyuan, Shanxi province. SUN RUISHENG/CHINA DAILY
Artist works with scrap materials to create unique pieces he thinks of as priceless
At first glance, Huang Qicai's studio in a southern suburb of Taiyuan, Shanxi province, might look to the uninitiated like a recycling workshop, as it is filled with discarded wheel hubs and other types of metallic waste. Yet a closer look reveals a hidden world of art.
The first sculpture to confront visitors is a horse-like creature with its horned head held high. Soon, the heads of other animals swim into view - a chicken, snake and cow, each formed out of scrap metal and measuring more than 1 meter in height.
Huang, an art teacher at Taiyuan University, spends almost all his free time in the workshop creating metal sculptures, seldom leaving to be with his wife and child.
The 40-year-old's passion for his art is rooted in his childhood, when his father worked in a nonferrous metal factory.
"Life was hard then, but with skillful hands, my father made almost all the furniture we needed from the metal waste he collected. He even made me some toys, which really impressed me," he said.
