Ye Pinyong shows a stone to a foreign tourist during an exhibition in Qingtian county, Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A native of Qingtian county, Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province, Ye Pinyong is a master of Chinese arts and crafts and a representative inheritor of Qingtian Stone Carving, an intangible cultural heritage.

Skilled in carving animals, flowers and landscapes, he created a new genre of stone carving called Shuimo Qingtian ("water and ink Qingtian"), which combines various elements of traditional Chinese painting and contemporary sculpture art into stone carvings.

During the G20 Summit held in Hangzhou in September 2016, his stone carving works were appreciated by guests from around the world. Over the years, more than 50 of his pieces have received awards in China, a favourite among collectors.

Lishui Jian, a stone carving work in the shape of a large ship by Ye Pinyin, presents the natural scenery and landscape of Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Qingtian county, located in the rolling hills of southern Zhejiang province, is known as the "Hometown of Chinese Stone Carving" that are made of high-quality pyrophyllite, a type of silicate with the perfect hardness for carving and sculptures that comes in more than 100 varieties, depending on colour, source and pattern.

In 2006, the craft of Qingtian Stone Carving was put on the national cultural heritage list and it has grown into a multi-million-yuan industry that employs 23,000 people and reaches customers in 40 countries and regions.

A garden of loquats, a stone carving work by Ye Pinyong. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A set of teapots carved out of stone is displayed in Ye Pinyong's workshop. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Yandang Qinghuai, a stone carving work by Ye Pinyong, integrates stone carving techniques with traditional Chinese landscape painting. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Huanle Jiayuan, a stone carving work by Ye Pinyong, shows zebras chasing each other on the grassland and mountainous area. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Fang Xiaoying in Qingtian contributed to this story.