Because of their financial condition, Kang's parents were not able to support him in learning fine arts during his school years. He spent his spare time after school studying drawing by himself, and he bought some art materials, such as moldable rubber, to make some easy creations.

After graduating from a vocational technical college in 2016, Kang returned to his hometown and became a staff member at the Mohe Forestry Bureau.

Then, in December 2018, during a visit to a museum in Beijing, Kang for the first time got information about the intangible cultural heritage of dough sculpting, which attracted him greatly. After returning home, he began to search for more information, finding that dough sculpture was listed as a national-level intangible cultural heritage.