当京剧脸谱进入Molly
When Peking opera facial design meets Molly
24/04/2026
Hector Chan
初次见到赵楠，是在纽约联合国大厦的报告厅里。这样的场合天然带着“文化代表”的意味，传统被压缩进有限的时间与语言，再被置入国际语境之中。作为京剧脸谱代表性传承人，她当时谈及的，是中国戏曲艺术在当下的重新展开。她关注脸谱与戏曲造型在当代视觉体系中的延展，也思考这些经验如何被新的观众理解，并进入更广阔的传播路径。她的表达指向一种持续生成中的传统，一种仍然能够回应当下的艺术语言。
那一次见面，只是一个开端。
I first met Zhao Nan in a meeting room at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Settings like this naturally carry the weight of cultural representation—tradition is condensed into limited time and language, then placed within an international context. As a recognized inheritor of Peking opera facial design, she spoke about how Chinese operatic traditions are being rearticulated today. Her focus was on how the visual system of facial painting and theatrical form can extend into contemporary contexts, how it might be understood by new audiences, and how it can move across broader channels of circulation. What emerged was a view of tradition as something ongoing—capable of responding to the present.
That meeting was only a beginning.
回到国内，我专门去了景德镇找她。再见到她时，是另一种完全不同的场景：没有讲台，没有灯光，只有窑火。她的工作室就在窑旁边，空气里带着烧制后的温度与尘土。她每天的工作很具体，除了创作，还要盯釉色、看开片、判断火候、安排出窑，再决定哪些可以进入市场。看她工作，会意识到那种状态介于艺术家与工匠之间，每一个环节都被认真对待，没有“差不多”的空间。
她的创作逻辑，与京剧脸谱本身如出一辙：所有看似夸张的表达，背后都有极其精确的结构控制。
Back in China, I traveled to Jingdezhen to visit her. The setting could not have been more different: no stage, no lighting—only the kiln. Her studio sits beside it, the air thick with heat and dust from firing. Her daily work is precise and grounded. Alongside creation, she monitors glaze, observes crackle patterns, judges firing conditions, schedules kiln cycles, and decides which works enter the market. Watching her, one senses a balance between artist and maker, where every stage is handled with care and there is little room for approximation.
This structural awareness runs parallel to the logic of Peking opera facial design itself: what appears expressive or exaggerated is underpinned by rigorous control.
她的新联名《SPACE MOLLY 美猴王》，将这一逻辑带入更开放的当代语境。初看像是对潮玩形象的再设计，细看之下，是一套结构严密的视觉系统。太空面罩上的脸谱对应面部表情肌肉的分布：红色反葫芦落在眼眶与口周这些最活跃的区域，额头的旋纹集中视觉与精神重心。这并非简单的元素挪用，而是对传统内部逻辑的重新梳理与转译，使其在新的载体中继续发生作用。
服装的处理同样延续这一思路。她从戏曲中的“靠”出发，对虎头靠肚进行卡通化与比例重构，使其在当代语境中依然成立。这种处理方式，比单纯的符号拼贴更为复杂，也更依赖对传统结构的理解。
Her most recent design, SPACE MOLLY: Monkey King, brings this logic into a more open contemporary framework. At first glance, it may read as a reimagined designer toy. On closer inspection, it reveals a tightly constructed visual system. The facial patterns on the space helmet correspond to zones of muscular expression: the red gourd motif frames the eyes and mouth—areas of greatest movement—while the spiral at the forehead concentrates visual and symbolic energy. Rather than borrowing from tradition, the work reinterprets its internal logic, allowing it to function within a new medium.
The costume follows a similar approach. Drawing from the operatic kao armor, Zhao reconfigures the tiger-head apron through proportion and stylization, maintaining its structural significance while adapting it to a contemporary visual language. This is a more demanding process than simple appropriation, requiring a deep understanding of the source system.
再见到她，是在东莞的艺术工厂里。我看到她亲手给Molly调整服装，一边处理细节，一边与工人沟通。那一刻很直观：从手工到生产，再到进入展览与市场，这条路径被完整地串联起来，她始终在其中。
也正因如此，当我在上海的复星艺术中心看到这件作品时，感受变得很直接。从联合国的发言，到景德镇的窑火，再到展览空间，这是一条被清晰走出来的线索。关于非遗的当代转化，讨论很多；在她这里，关键始终在于结构是否被保留。形式会变化，逻辑依然清晰。
而她正在做的，正是这件更难的事。
展览「一颗不变的星：MOLLY20周年特展·上海站」正在上海复兴艺术中心展出，展期为2026年3月21日至5月10日。
I saw her again in a art factory in Dongguan, adjusting Molly’s costume by hand, refining details while speaking with workers. The process was clear: from handcraft to production, and onward to exhibition and market, the entire trajectory remains under her direction.
It was with this in mind that I encountered the work at Fosun Art Center in Shanghai. The experience felt immediate. From the United Nations to the kilns of Jingdezhen, and into the exhibition space, a continuous line had been drawn. Discussions around the contemporary transformation of intangible heritage are widespread; here, the focus remains on whether the underlying structure endures. Forms may shift, but the logic holds.
This is the more demanding work—and the one she continues to pursue.
“A Timeless Star: MOLLY 20th Anniversary Exhibition, Shanghai” is on view from March 21 to May 10, 2026.
© 2026 by Hector Chen