When he was younger, there were times when he wanted to give up the craft altogether, mostly because the locals didn't value his work and scorned him for not having a stable job with a regular income.

He says that at times like those, it was the constant encouragement from his father and the support of local authorities that drove him to carry on.

Now, apart from the conventional clay sculpting, Yan has been innovating the art form by combining it with painting and relief sculpture.

"I also paint some gouache and traditional Chinese paintings. So, I thought I could combine clay sculpture with painting and give the pictures a three-dimensional effect. After much thought, I plastered the clay onto the wall, molded it into shapes of mountains and rivers and painted colors on them. The final effect is amazing," he says.