ModernOusuartworks have become much more varied to include frescos, hanging screens, furniture and jewelry boxes. In 1972, the late premier Zhou Enlai spoke highly of the "Shaoshan" -- anOusuhanging screen placed in the terminal hall of the Hangzhou Airport.

 Production

The basic ingredient ofOusuis a mixture of tung oil and clay. The technique of pile sculpting is employed in makingOusuartworks, which are used to decorate temples and fanes. InOusu, folk artists usually use pile sculpturing to create figures and sceneries on flat plates or walls, much like with reliefs and paintings.

 Characteristics

The most distinctive characteristic ofOusuis that it is a combination of both sculpting and painting -- two different art forms with their own distinct characteristics. Endowed with the benefits of round carving and reliefs, in this sense it is sculpture art. On the other hand, it also assimilated the techniques of Chinese and western painting, especially western theories concerning the application of beam and color. Therefore,Ousualso has a style unlike that of any sculpture.

Another obvious characteristic ofOusuis its strong artistic communicability, which is achieved by employing colors to depict the intensity of the beam, as well as the quality of the basic hue. This is similar to the realist technique in western painting. Fromthis point of view,Ousuis not only an ancient folk art, but also a young modern art that gradually reveals itself.

TwoOusuartworks in the Great Hall of the People -- "Panorama of West Lake" and "Autumn Scenery of Yandang" -- respectively fully display the consummate workmanship and the rich techniques of expression.