Dou-Gong 斗栱 or “cap and block” is known as a remarkable structural element of joining wooden brackets. It is one of the most significant elements in ancient Chinese architecture. The pieces of components are joined together with only the wooden joints, performing as the transition from columns to eave.

This workshop was the main part in the third semester of the CRAFT program. It was a preliminary training in traditional Chinese wood working skills. In the workshop, we not only learned about one type of Qing style Dou-Gong, but also tried to make a model in traditional way with hand tools. We used typical Chinese tools such as Chan (Chisel), Ju (Hand saw), Bao (Plane), as well as some western working tools. All work was done with the Third Class of the CRAFT collaboratively and supervised by traditional carpenter Mr. Xiang Bingzhe,