Hu Ruigang, dubbed Dough Figure Hu, is a dough sculptor in Wenshang county, Jining city of East China’s Shandong province. The 68-year-old makes dough figures and teaches visitors at Zhongdu Folk Museum every day.

Hu Ruigang, a dough sculptor makes a dough rose at Zhongdu Folk Museum. [Photo by Zhao Ruixue/China Daily]

After rubbing, pinching, kneading and pasting, a dough rose appeared in his hand. Many figures such as Xi Yang Yang (a popular cartoon sheep) and Mickey Mouse can be seen in his stall.

Hu used to sell figures outside schools or in parks and markets. With the help of the local government, he doesn’t go outside any more but works at the museum every day and sometimes teaches children to make figures.

A group of students came to learn dough sculpting during the summer holiday of 2014, Hu said.

He expects more people to get interested in dough figure making, so that the folk art can be passed down from one generation to another.

A Bangzi Opera performed at the Zhongdu Folk Museum. [Photo by Zhao Ruixue/China Daily]

Zhongdu Folk Museum is located in the Lianhua (lotus) Lake Wetland Parkin Jining city. The museum comprises three parts, concerning celebration customs, traditional folk arts and work customs. It boasts more than 8,000 collections and 50 intangible cultural heritage collections.

The museum exhibits many folk objects and old photos through advanced technology, mainly for traditional folk culture and customs of southwest Shandong, including weddings, childbirth, birthdays, craftsmanship, dramas, ballads, work and life.chinadaily.com.cn