The sugar-figure blowing is a traditional folk art of China. It has a long history while it is gradually disappearing.
Now some folk artists performed the art to make it known to people. They walk around lanes and streets and their skillful techniques make children and adult feel curious and magic.
It is said that this folk art is from Song dynasty, and at that time it was called sugar opera. Sugar-figure blowing art uses sugar as its raw material. The artists all have their own unique prescriptive to boil sugar.
Firstly the folk sugar-figure blowers heat the sugar up to proper temperature then pull a ward and knead it to a ball. Touching few farina with index finger, then they use the finger press a deep hole on the ball. Then pull the finger as well as the sugar out immediately till the sugar is very thin. At this moment, they break off the sugar stick. Now the sugar stick is as thin as needle, and it is proper time to blow air to the sugar to make it into moulds. At last they use different skills to make different shapes and painting bright colors on to it.
The art challenges the hand, eye, heart, breath, and temperature technique. One skill you couldn’t use skillfully, the whole procedure is a failure.
So if you get a chance, don’t miss it to see this traditional art.