Bristle figurine artist Bai Dacheng

Tucked in his bungalow along a Beijing alleyway, Bai Dacheng is the city's sole inheritor of a special skill --bristle figurine making. The clay dancers were a favorite in the age before modern entertainment. Now, people are giving them a new kind of appreciation. And Bai Dacheng is the keeper of figurine culture.

Elderly people, living in Beijing's rustic alleyways, hold Peking Opera dear to their hearts. On clear mornings, they'll gather in parks, to lose themselves in their favorite songs. Peking Opera swept the capital more than two hundred years ago. To this day, it holds a huge following. And the opera itself has spawned new art forms, including bristle figurines. The figurines made popular toys when television was still a rarity.

Bai Dacheng is the city's sole remaining bristle figurine artist. With a childhood passion for Peking Opera, and a strong knowledge of painting, Bai dove into the art form, and has been immersed in it for forty-six years.

Bai Dacheng, Bristle figurine artist, said, "Bristle figurines date back more than a century. The first figurines, like this one, are cone-shaped and have flat movable arms. Their faces are painted abstractly. Early figurines borrow much from the art of shadow puppetry, and from Peking Opera masks. They were dressed in paper, but now I use silk for the costumes. I make sets of characters, from Peking Operas."

Among the sets, "The Monkey King's fight with a dozen gods" creates dynamic motion.

"People love these movable figurines. After having dumplings on Chinese New Year's Eve, people put them out on a copper plate. The figurines dance to tapping sounds. This creates fascinating effects. Beijingers affectionately call it Opera on a Plate. And people who like singing Peking Opera take the chance to practice. It's a kind of family entertainment." Bai said.