在？教你做个敦煌彩塑

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敦煌彩塑有历史记载最早可追溯至汉朝，但千年以前的中国工匠是如何打造出如此栩栩如生的等身人物彩塑呢？

The colored sculptures in Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes， a UNESCO World Heritage site in northwest China’s Gansu Province， have been recorded as far back as the Han Dynasty （202 BC－AD 25）． But how did Chinese craftsmen create such lifelike colored sculptures of life－like figures thousands of years ago？

答案是：穿越！

The answer might be a shared art philosophy transcending time and national borders．

敦煌彩塑的制作似乎与现代美术、西方美术有着异曲同工之妙，它更加注重人体骨骼、肌肉的关系，人物比例和肌体的协调性、真实性。对比中国历史上其他雕塑形式，你可以看到他们之间明显的不同。这也证明了中国古代的艺术家们有必要的话也是可以创造出《大卫》《思想者》那样的雕塑作品。

The making of Dunhuang colored sculptures seems to share similar ideas with modern art and western art， as it also pays more attention to the relationship between human bones and muscles， the proportion of figures and the coordination and authenticity of the body． The features are distinct when compared with other forms of sculpture in Chinese history and make it possible that ancient Chinese artists could create sculptures like “David” and “The Thinker” if asked to．

小型彩塑，匠师会将木料削成人物的大体结构，再薄薄塑上一层细泥，由此制作一个木胎并在它的基础上塑形，这样的制作工艺在敦煌之外并不多见。

For small colored sculptures， the craftsman will cut the wood into the general structure of the characters， and then make a thin layer of fine mud to make a wooden model on which to make the character take shape gradually． Such a production process is rare outside Dunhuang．

中型彩塑则需要更多的木料来制作骨架。红柳，枝干根茎弯转曲回，枝条强韧，可任意烘烤弯曲，是敦煌古代匠师编制彩塑骨架，教育孩子，烤羊肉串，最为常用的木料。

Medium－sized colored sculptures require more wood to make the body structure． The tamarisk， with its branches and roots twisting and turning， and its tough branches， can be baked and bent at will． It is the most common wood used by ancient Dunhuang craftsmen to work out the colored sculpture body structure， spank naughty children and roast mutton as skewers．

他们利用适当弯曲的树木枝干或根茎，稍做加工和组接，制作出鲜明生动的人物结构。一些细长的枝条被制作为手指，而一些稍有弯曲的枝干则会用作人物的躯干。

They use appropriately curved tree branches or roots， slightly processed and assembled， to create a vivid character structure． Some slender branches are made into fingers， while some slightly curved branches are used as the trunk of characters．

骨架搭制成形后，还需用草或芦苇进一步捆扎出人物的结构，赋予骨架“肌肉纤维”，再层层上泥，细致塑形。既有效减轻了泥对骨架的负重，也更方便匠师准确把握彩塑的造型。

After the body structure is built into shape， grass or reeds are used to further tie up the structure of the figure， giving the structure “muscle fibers”， and then layers of mud are added to shape the figure in a delicate manner． It not only effectively reduces the weight of the mud on the structure， but also more convenient for the craftsman to accurately manage the shape of the colored sculpture．

以木为骨，再敷彩为皮，敦煌彩塑才格外婀娜多姿，充满生气。时至今日，敦煌彩塑仍然保持着这样传统的制作技艺，神秘而亲切、古典而现代，取材朴素而精巧绝伦。

With wood as the bones and colored coating as skin， Dunhuang colored sculptures are particularly graceful and full of vitality． To this day， Dunhuang colored sculptures still maintain such traditional production techniques with simple materials but exquisite designs， making the art both mysterious and cordial， classical and modern．