Grapes symbolize happiness, prosperity and good luck in traditional Chinese culture. As such, patterns of grapes have adorned diverse handicrafts since ancient times. Beijing has been renowned for Grape Chang, exquisite glass grapes, during the past century. People are generally surprised to learn the mouth-watering grapes, which appear ripe and ready-to-eat, are made from glass.

Beginning

Grape Chang, which emerged during the reign of Emperor Guangxu (1871-1908), during the Qing Dynasty (1616-1911), was named after the family, Chang, renowned for its excellent craftsmanship in making glass grapes. Hanqiharibu, who made a living by selling various kinds of fruit-shaped crafts made out of clay, developed the technique for making grape crafts. Later, as he tried to improve the crafts, he began using glass, a rare material at that time. Inspired by the method used to make glass beads as eyes for toys, he managed to make realistic-looking glass grapes. 

In 1894, Hanqiharibu's glass grapes were offered to the imperial family as a tribute to Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908) on her 60th birthday. Cixi was pleased by the birthday gift, and she granted Hanqiharibu the title "Chang Zai," a blessing that literally means "always there." Hanqiharibu changed his name to Chang Zai, and he changed his family's surname to Chang. 

Over time, Chang's glass grapes became well-known in Beijing, and across the country. In Beijing, traditionally, the name of a folk art was composed of the artisan's family name and the type of folk art. Hence, glass grapes came to be known as "Grape Chang." In 1915, the family's glass grapes won first prize at the Panama Pacific International Exposition. After that, the family received orders from more than 20 countries. 

Revival

After Chang Yuling, one of the third generation of inheritors of Grape Chang, died, in 1986, the ancestral craft was almost lost. In 2003, a Beijing-based media outlet published an article, in which the author lamented how some of the once-flourishing folk arts, including Grape Chang, had disappeared, or had become at risk of disappearing. Chang Hong and her sister, Chang Yan, fifth-generation descendants of Hanqiharibu, were affected by the article. They both felt a sense of responsibility for reviving their family's technique for making glass grapes, and ultimately for reviving the Grape Chang brand. 

"When my sister and I were young, our grandaunt, Chang Yuling, sometimes required us to stay by her side while she was making glass grapes. Therefore, we still had a vague idea of how to make the grapes. With support from Beijing Folk Literature and Art Association, we tried every step, repeatedly. We finally completed our first work, in early summer of 2004," recalls Chang Hong.

More than 10 steps — including selecting and melting glass, blowing glass beads, coloring, waxing, frosting and assembling — are required to make glass grapes. All steps require manual skills, and all efforts are wasted if the slightest mistake is made during any of the steps. Blowing the glass beads is the hardest step, says Chang Hong. First, she blows molten glass, through a metal tube, to make a glass tube. Then, she blows molten glass, through the glass tube, to make a hollow glass bead. She has to repeat the two steps constantly. The molten glass is hotter than 1,500 C, and a glass bead must be blown within seconds, which requires the artisan to take extreme care, and to use proficient skill. 

The next step is making the grape stalks. Cotton paper is rolled over a thin iron wire, and then the wire is inserted into the beads. Chang Hong says she must precisely control her strength during this step. If her strength is less than required, the wire will not be inserted into the beads. On the other hand, she will break the beads if she uses too much strength. 

Coloring, waxing and frosting are also essential steps. "It's not easy to color the glass beads. I need to put the beads into burning-hot-liquid wax several times, to color the beads, so they look like real grapes, and to create the texture of the grape's skin. After the beads are dried, naturally, I use fine, smooth incense ashes to frost the grapes. The frosting method is exclusive to our family," Chang Hong says. 

In 2011, the technique for making Grape Chang was added to the list of China's national intangible cultural heritage. In 2017, Chang Hong, a fifth-generation inheritor of Grape Change, was recognized as the representative inheritor of the craft. 

Inheriting

Thirteen-year-old Tang Hantuoya, also called Chang Kaixin, who is Chang Hong's granddaughter, is the seventh-generation inheritor of Grape Chang. Tang often stays in her grandmother's studio, in a suburb of Beijing, during her winter and summer vacations. She has developed a passion for her family's heritage. Even though some of the steps used to make the grapes can be dangerous, she carefully studies how to make glass grapes, step by step, under her grandmother's guidance. 

Tang hopes to be admitted by the Central Academy of Fine Arts, a prestigious university in Beijing, after she completes high school. "I want to become a fine arts teacher after I graduate from the university. I hope to promote the craft of making Grape Chang," Tang says.

Photos from Chang Hong

(Women of China English Monthly February 2025)

Editor: Wang Shasha