【CONCEPT】
Although ants are very small, and don’t seem very impressive, the display a spirit worthy of respect and admiration. They have a social and organizational structure wherein tasks are divided up in an orderly and sequential way, a mystery that biologists even to this day have not solved. Worker ants forage for food and build the nest, while soldier ants stand guard and protect it. A sense of responsibility and honor rests on those weak and slender six legs. How much weight can they carry? How far can they go? And they can follow a path marked by secreted signals back to their starting point. That degree of loyalty, durability, ability to withstand pressure is something from which we should learn. Moved from the outset by the ant’s ability to carry heavy loads, I raised a colony of them and observed them every day, continuously and leisurely enjoying them. Ants are already completely internalized into my creative life and an important presence integrated into my philosophy of life. A large work of a group of ants can be plotted out and rendered freely; a tiny work depicting a single ant can make one feel happy and smile at a job well done! This is a creator’s greatest ardor—selecting what you love and loving what you select with no complaint or regret, just like a taciturn ant…

【INTRODUCTION】
Plotting out the depiction of an ant on a leaf is different for different sculpting materials, and has a different intention. Jade is used for the green leaf and gold sculpting for the ant. The yellow-gleaming gold inset into the warm and smooth jade oozes elegance and high value. That ant seems to have just escaped from the arduous toil of boring through soil and has a slightly haughty posture, with its tiny body held proudly. It is hard to imagine that with only a difference of sculpting material, the dashing appearance of the entire ant is utterly scintillating, causing one to exclaim at this “small but gorgeous” work. Gold and jade go well together and the technique is very satisfactory, making one just love to behold it!