--FILE--A Liuli artwork, an ancient type of Chinese glass, is on display at Chinese Liuli handicraft master Xing Lanxiang's studio in Beijing, China, 22 December 2017. Have you ever come across a piece of colored glass and found yourself attracted by its beauty? It might be Liuli, an ancient type of Chinese glass. Xing Lanxiang is someone who can make Liuli into beautiful Liuli artwork. Xing Lanxing is sitting behind a flamethrower, holding a long piece of Liuli, putting it in the fire, rotating it, and sculpting it quickly, before a small delicate bottle appears in her hand. Making one bottle like this normally takes a Liuli maker several hours, while for her, it takes just over 10 minutes. Xing Lanxiang attributes this to her years of practice. Xing Lanxiang's ceaseless efforts have reward her greatly. One of her works, made in 1970, was given as a national gift to Kim Il-Sung, then Premier of North Korea. Another made by her in 2003, which featured a katydid resting on a cabbage, was gifted by the government to Mahathir, the former Prime Minister of Malaysia. Her works have also been widely exhibited domestically and internationally.
