CCTV9英语新闻11月：上海消失的工艺品

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By CCTV reporter Shi Wenjing

Shanghai is known as China's commercial hub, where art and craftsmanship² has traditionally thrived alongside business. CCTV reporter Shi Wenjing has explored some narrow lanes of the city’s old residential³ compounds to look at two street craftsmen⁴ and the skills in danger of vanishing forever.

92-year-old Wei Pengfei is something of a magician when it comes to bamboo-- he can turn it into all kinds of housewares.

This small store is his home and workshop, inherited from his father more than fifty years ago. The family history can be traced in the piles of bamboo steamers.

“My father learned to make bamboo steamers from my grandfather, and he taught me the skill when I was 5. I’ve been doing this for more than 80 years.” Street craftsman¹ Wei Pengfei said.

Bamboo is rarely found in the city nowadays. The store imports quality stock from a nearby province. It takes about an hour to make a bamboo steamer.

Wei Pengfei says there used to be 100 artisans in Shanghai. He’s the only one in his family who can still make bamboo steamers. He’s also the last generation with this old time skill.

Across the Huangpu River lives another craftsman. Wang Hongchun specializes in the rabbit lanterns, a New Year tradition during China’s Lantern Festival. The 72-year-old is a retired⁵ teacher who took up the craft five years ago.

“I learned to make rabbit lanterns from my aunt decades ago. At that time, rabbit lanterns were sold everywhere during the festival. But today it’s hard to find handmade rabbit lanterns in Shanghai. Five years ago, I tried to find a way to restart the production of the lantern because it has many of our memories of the old days." Wang said.

Wang Hongchun moved his workshop to his home early this year due to the increasing rent and production costs. He’ll soon move to a new spacious⁶ studio where he can devote more time and energy to reviving this craft.

1 craftsman   

n.技工，精于一门工艺的匠人

参考例句：

• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。
• The craftsman is working up the mass of clay into a toy figure.艺人把一团泥捏成玩具形状。

2 craftsmanship   

n.手艺

参考例句：

• The whole house is a monument to her craftsmanship. 那整座房子是她技艺的一座丰碑。
• We admired the superb craftsmanship of the furniture. 我们很欣赏这个家具的一流工艺。

3 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

4 craftsmen   

n. 技工

参考例句：

• rugs handmade by local craftsmen 由当地工艺师手工制作的小地毯
• The craftsmen have ensured faithful reproduction of the original painting. 工匠保证要复制一幅最接近原作的画。

5 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

6 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。