Cross Stitch: Folk Art At The Edge Of Loss

Cross Stitch: a long history

Cross stitch is a method of manual embroidery. It uses ground cloth or linen cloth as base cloth and embroidered thread with cotton thread. The design is bold and ingenious, and its composition is full and even.

The cross stitch of Dantu is popular in Shangdang and its surrounding areas. It is mainly used for decorations of daily necessities such as clothing. It was once a daily practice of local women, with strong local characteristics and life flavor.

Li Herong, a stationmaster at Shangdang town cultural station, told reporters that when the art of cross stitching art was not tested, it is only known that the art has been in existence for more than 200 years.

"Maybe Dantu is located in the geographical position of Wu Touchuwei, and the art of picking up flowers in Shangdang is not only beautiful and beautiful, but also rough and simple."

Li also told reporters that unlike the embroidery that people used to decorate in the picture frame for decoration, Dantu Shangdang's cross stitching is of great practical value. From children's bib, belly pocket to women's wedding dress, embroidered shoes and waist pockets and aprons used in daily work, they can be decorated with embroidered fabrics as long as they are cloth products.

Wang Yuelan: the pick up artist of Shangdang

Wang Yuelan, a famous and well-known cross stitch artist in Shangdong village, Shangdong village, has been studying the art of cross stitching since the 70s of last century. It has been more than 40 years since then.

She recalled that in those days, cross stitching was almost a job for everyone in the local community. "When I was little, it was very popular. When the new year, the elders would embroider a new bib, a bib and something for the children. When the bride was married, she would embroider some auspicious patterns on her wedding dress."

"Cross stitch is not ready-made, patterns are all flowers, birds, fish and worms seen in life."

In Wang Yuelan's eyes, the European cross stitch which is very popular now is evolved from the cross stitch. "Stitch stitching and cross stitch stitching are very similar. Only cross stitch is easy to save. It can only be embroidered on the embroidered cloth with lattice eyes, and the cross stitch pattern is also more realistic."

The reporter compares Wang Yuelan's pictorial work with the cross stitch, and finds that the two are in the same way, and they are made up of the embroidered cross.

However, compared with the meticulous cross stitch, Dantu's cross stitching is more focused on imagination, and the abstract way of expression highlights the romantic and unique artistic atmosphere of traditional flower stitching techniques.

Lack of successors: helpless realities

This kind of primitive folk craft, which is applied to life, integrates art and practicality, has been gradually declining since the last 80 years. Today, the process of cross stitching has gone into a situation of little successors and being lost.

Wang Yuelan told reporters that there are few people who pick flowers in Dantu now, and most of them are sixty or seventy years old. Although she is over fifty years old, she is the youngest among those who pick flowers.

"Now young people are not patient to learn how to pick flowers. My nieces followed me at the very beginning, but they didn't last."

During the interview, Wang Yuelan reluctantly indicated that she could not do anything about the lost status of the cross stitching technology. After all, no one was interested in picking flowers and no market.

In view of the dilemma of cross stitching, the Shangdang town government and relevant departments decided to rescue this folk art.

First, the declaration of the cross stitch art was put into the list of protection of the intangible cultural heritage of the provinces and cities. Secondly, a training course was set up, and a class of interest in art of cross stitching was set up for students in Zhi Xian Chung Middle School of Shangdang town. In addition, with the help of the local government, Wang Yue LAN actively participated in various kinds of folk art exhibitions so that more people could understand and understand the cross stitch work.

Under such efforts, the cross stitching technology finally came out of the upper party and gradually gained the attention of many experts and media.

However, despite the renewed attention, the overall status of stitching technology is still not optimistic.

Li Herong said: "only by stepping out of the small world of embroidering hands and enjoying ourselves and exploring the road of marketization can we gain vitality."