Master Cheung Foon has enjoyed drawing since he was young, and it was twenty years ago that he first got in touch with lion head bamboo crafting and papier-mâché. Perhaps because he was endowed with the artistic talent, he managed to understand the craft within the first year of his apprenticeship. However, he did not continue with the practice in the next twenty years, and it was only until 2016 that he started crafting lion and kirin heads again.

For Master Cheung Foon, the blueprint of the lion head design has been deeply embedded in his mind. He only relies on his instinct and experience, without using any sketches, to craft out the bamboo frame of the head. The coloring process demands craftsmanship and patience, especially for lion and kirin heads which have complicated structures and curving parts, and this would require the accumulated experience of the craftsman to complete the work.

Master Cheung Foon has listed “talent”, “concentration” and “patience” as the prerequisite for becoming a bamboo crafting and papier-mâché master. An outstanding lion head bamboo crafting and papier-mâché work should embody the characteristics of “spiritual”, “symmetrical”, and with an “upright appearance”.