Traditional Intangible Cultural Heritage Embroidery Is Facing New Opportunities And Challenges

Hand embroidery is an ancient traditional skill in China. Nowadays, with China constantly setting off a round of "national tide", the development of traditional manual embroidery is facing new opportunities and challenges. On the eve of the two sessions of the National People's Congress, many deputies to the National People's Congress spoke about how to "break the circle" of embroidery. They stressed that the inheritors of embroidery should not stop at the watchers of traditional culture, but should make the ancient techniques radiate new vitality through industrialization.

The picture shows that Shi Liping is interviewed by a reporter at the Songtao Miao embroidery Museum in Bijiang District, Tongren City, Guizhou Province on February 17. Photo by Qu honglun

　　 How to inherit: pay equal attention to skills and culture

Miao embroidery is an embroidery skill inherited by Miao people in China. As China's national intangible cultural heritage, Miao embroidery, with thousands of years of history, engraves the creation myth, migration history and delicate emotion of the people on the clothing.

"There are a lot of elements in Miao embroidery clothing, such as what patterns are used to cross the river and what patterns to use when crossing mountains." Li Shaoyu, deputy to the National People's Congress and representative inheritor of Pengshui Miao embroidery of Chongqing intangible cultural heritage project, told reporters. For Miao embroidery clothing, she has an image metaphor - "the wordless history books on her body". "What Miao embroidery represents is not only a piece of clothing or a technology, but also a national culture, which must be well inherited." Li Shaoyu said.

In view of the problems existing in the inheritance of Miao embroidery, Shi Liping, deputy to the National People's Congress and seventh generation inheritor of Songtao Miao embroidery, told reporters that at this stage, some inheritors are only superficial, "as Inheritors, in addition to skills, they also need knowledge and culture. Now we do not lack craftsmanship, what we lack is cultural talents."

Shi Liping stressed that talent training is the key link, and the government needs to improve the inheritance system through systematic planning so as to realize the continuous supply of talents.

Cheng Xinxiang is embroidery. Photo by Tang Xiaoqing

　　 How to position: not just the traditional watchman

Xiang embroidery is one of the four famous embroidery in China, which has a history of more than 2000 years. On behalf of the highest skill of Xiang embroidery, double-sided and completely different embroidery is known as "magic art". However, how the traditional art "hand in hand" modern life "out of the circle" is a problem that Cheng Xinxiang, deputy to the National People's Congress and director of the production department of Hunan Xiangxiu Research Institute, has been thinking about.

He has been engaged in the Xiang embroidery industry for more than 30 years. Every time he goes to Beijing to attend the meeting, he will wear the latest Xiang embroidery clothing and cultural and creative accessories, so as to introduce the innovation of Xiang embroidery. "Traditional Xiang embroidery has entered modern life, and traditional art is gaining more recognition through industrial development and prosperity." Cheng Xinxiang told reporters.

"We can't stop to be a watchman, we must form a brand by stimulating endogenous power, and finally feed intangible cultural heritage through industrial development." Shi Liping, who has walked more than 30000 Li and traveled through villages to record the history of Miao embroidery, was deeply touched by this. In recent years, she has been advocating the development mode of "Miao embroidery +" - Taking "Miao embroidery + clothing" as an example, taking the raw materials of Radix Isatidis as dyeing thread, in addition to Miao embroidery itself, it can also promote the in-depth development of the industrial chain of Banlangen planting, weaving and clothing sales.

"National is the world's, every needle and thread is so wonderful." "As Inheritors, we believe that what we inherit is both culture and industry," Shi said

　 How to break the circle: embracing popularization and youth

As a traditional Chinese craft, "exquisite and advanced" has always been the impression of hand embroidery in the eyes of the public. Nowadays, it is the common understanding of more and more inheritors of embroidery to say goodbye to "high and low" and embrace popularization and youth.

"The post-90s and post-00s young people are more and more confident in the excellent traditional culture. They are patriotic, use domestic products and pay attention to the trend of the country." Cheng Xinxiang believes that the "out of circle" of Xiang embroidery needs to be innovated through the way of "traditional culture modernization", and it should be combined with science and technology and art to enter modern life. Bedding, wedding dress, bookmarks, Bluetooth stereo, car fragrance, backpack... Cheng Xinxiang led the team to develop many derivative products of Xiang embroidery culture closely related to life, and became the "new favorite" of young people.

Facing the problems of monotonous design and poor production of embroidery products, Li Shaoyu further pointed out that the development of intangible cultural heritage must embrace young people through innovation. Compared with the traditional Miao embroidery, Li Shaoyu embroidered the local tourist attractions or "Qingming Shanghe Tu" and other Chinese paintings on the products, and used silk fabrics and silk thread to create Pengshui Miao embroidery more and more "young".

Li Shaoyu said that at this year's National People's Congress, she will put forward suggestions, hoping to establish the concept of intangible cultural heritage entering modern life on the basis of adhering to the tradition and keeping its essence, so as to promote the comprehensive integration of intangible cultural heritage into life.

(source: China News Network)