Lang Jiaziyu, 24, is the third-generation inheritor of Dough Figurine Lang, a national intangible cultural heritage. The figurine is named in the traditional way, with a surname attached, which makes Lang's is family one of the most famous in China. The special naming tradition is a way of acknowledging or praising the family for its contribution. 

Although dough figurines can be traced back thousands of years, it was Zhou's grandfather who the first thought to put them into boxes with decorations to make them real works of art. Before that, this cultural icon was just a small toy loved by children on the street. 

The figures are made representing things like the Chinese opera, scenes from books or daily life and mythical characters in famous works.

When Lang Jiaziyu was young, he made lots of cartoon characters. Later, he realized there was no better way to record his thoughts than by putting his spirit into his work. In one of his recent figures, he made a little Lang Jiaziyu with three faces, each exhibiting a different emotion. He says as people have to deal with many different emotions every day, it's not easy work.

As an inheritor, Lang is now introducing this traditional art to people through social media like Tiktok and Weibo. People love it when he uploads videos of him making interesting figurines. 

"Many parents and children leave messages asking me where to learn," Lang said. "It's a big process to stimulate their interest in this traditional art."