Educational Media Reviews Online

A Chinese Craft is one in a series of thirteen videos entitled For a Bowl of Rice. Each video in this series explores the occupations and the economic life of every-day individuals in Asia, focusing on traditional or unusual trades. In A Chinese Craft, the viewer is taken to a Joss-Stick factory, a marble stamp maker's studio, and a clog maker's shop in Malaysia. Each of these crafts has been passed down through Chinese tradition, and exemplifies the multicultural heritage of Malaysia.

Students of religious and social studies as well as the arts may be interested in learning about the Joss Stick, which has been used in Chinese prayer for more than 4,000 years. Joss Sticks, made of bamboo, sawdust and glue, range in length from four to twenty-four feet, may be steeped in sandalwood or other perfumes, and are burned like candles at religious ceremonies. It may be surprising to learn that they account for millions of dollars spent around the world each year, yet impose respiratory health risks on those who manufacture them. Disappointingly, the narrator does not discuss their religious significance in detail. It is not made clear if adherents of Buddhism are the only worshippers who use Joss Sticks.

Two other trades, seal carving and clog making, are covered briefly. Craftsmen from both professions, in interviews, explain skills that they have gained through apprenticeship. We also learn that hand-carved marble stamps are still accepted in place of a written signature on legal documents, which leads us to wonder about literacy levels among the masses in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the video does not mention literacy at all. It does touch upon environmental issues, though, when discussing clog making. The scarcity of good wood for carving clogs has driven the price up by over 500 percent since 1970.

The narrow focus of this video on the process of crafting Chinese Joss Sticks, seals, and clogs may frustrate viewers who are interested in understanding the place of these traditions within the larger society, but it is still appropriate for libraries supporting studies in art history at the undergraduate level. Technically, the video could be improved, as there is too much yellow in the picture. One appreciates that interviews are translated into English, but the timing is sometimes a bit awkward, as the interviewee continues in his or her native language long after the English voice-over has ceased. Despite these shortcomings, videos in the For a Bowl of Rice series offer detailed information about Asian occupations and crafts not to be found elsewhere. A Chinese Craft is also available in Spanish, and will cost as little as $166.65 or as much as $295.00 depending upon the level of licensing a library selects. Recommended.