Deft hands, old ways: The dying breed of craftsmen
Print Edition
They repaired chamber pots, fixed broken pens, patched holes in clothing and restored sagging coir mattresses more than two decades ago, when money was short, goods were scarce and people had to make do.
Today, these craftsmen with old repairing and hand-making skills seem anachronistic. No longer do they pedal their old bikes with tool kits on their backs through the narrow lanes of Shanghai, hawking their services in cries that were part of the cacophony of daily life.
They are a dying breed, made redundant by the new technologies and throw-away mentality of a different consumer era.
But behind their wizened faces and twinkly smiles are stories that form part of our cultural heritage, and it’s important we take the time to listen and pay tribute to the contributions they made to society so humbly and often so artistically.
Shanghai Daily has interviewed seven of these old craftsmen to hear them talk about skills — and lifestyles — that are fast disappearing from our modern scene.
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