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However, the impact of foreign culture and urban culture leads to the rapid loss of cultural soil for folk art survival. The folk art which has brought us spice and joy is in the predicament of loss. Some time ago, a shadow play troupe in Gucheng County, Hubei Province made a notice on the county television, website and other media for taking apprentice to inherit the art, but unfortunately no one has responded so far. The troupe was forced to stop performance for many days because the old artist was in poor health. Even a troupe is in such dilemma, many folk artists with expertise are more worried about their successors. Biandeng (light making), a symbol for thriving and happy life, is a common handicraft popular on weddings and festivities in Jiangnan for over one thousand years. Wu Dadi, a Biandeng artist in Zhejiang, is famous for his flag light workmanship far and wide. He is always thinking of taking several apprentices to help him for his age and, more importantly, to pass down his craft. However, his wish has not been fulfilled for this time-consuming and low- paid work.

Wu Dadi is not the only case. An investigation for the situation of folk handicraft in Beijing jointly conducted by the Beijing People's Broadcasting Station and the Beijing Arts and Crafts Society shows that most artists are facing the problems of the loss of craft, lack of disciples and so on when they’re in old age. In 60 categories of old arts and crafts in Beijing, more than 40 have no successors and are facing the risk of extinction. Many expertise folk artists are worried about extinction of the craft inherited from their ancestors. Any of the arts handed down for generations may become extinct just following one man’s death.

Folk art, in the long course of development, unconsciously becomes an important carrier for historical legacy. For example, the Tibetan folk epic King Gesar and Yunnan Naxi people's "Dongba" language use the form of folk art to directly record the history. In addition, the printed blue cloth of Nantong in Jiangsu and the batik of Guizhou are the "living fossil" in printing and dyeing industry and are of significant value in the research of science and technology, culture, folk custom and art history. We can say that traditional Chinese folk culture is the root and soul of our nation, but now they are slowly vanishing. Only a few people really care about it and the traditional folk art is facing the pain of extinction.