Passing through the bell tower in Foshan Chancheng Guorui Shengpingli, straight ahead, the signboard of "Xiugong Huangzuo XiangyunSha Costume Art Experience Museum" is still hidden under a piece of red silk, and Cai Min, who stands in front of the window on the second floor, has just finished his work and has to drink tea idly.
Cai Min, who won the title of "Guangdong Textile Master Craftsman", as the chief designer of the "Xiugong Huangzuo" brand and an expert consultant of Shunde Lunjiao Xiangyun Yarn Academy, she has been active in the front line of innovative development of Xiangyun Yarn in recent years. At the 2021 Shenzhen Cultural Fair, her design works entered the Foshan Pavilion, demonstrating the pioneering power of Foshan's design community to integrate Xiangyun yarn into "fashion + ecology" and "intangible cultural heritage + life".
Cai Min has known Xiangyun Yarn since she was a child, but her official association with Xiangyun Yarn design was sixteen years ago. The local Xiangyun yarn costume designer in Foshan, who first put Xiangyun yarn on the stage of Asian and even international beauty pageants, described Xiangyun yarn as "like a painting, listening like a song", in the small town, there are endless stories of Xiangyun yarn.
origin
The design breaks through and helps the dust "soft gold" to regain its brilliance
In 1979, Cai Min joined the state-owned garment enterprise and has never left the garment industry since. From the millennium to the millennium, Cai Min began to create her own clothing brand, focusing on tailoring and high-end customization, at that time, Cai Min did not expect that in a few years, she would fall in love with and obsessed with the use of xiangyun yarn, an ancient fabric for design.
"In 2005, someone came to me with a small piece of fabric with a black side and a brown side," Ms. Cai recalled, recognizing at a glance that it was the singular that the elders of the family often wore, but it disappeared for a long time. "They said very seriously, 'This is the treasure of Foshan!' I realized that the problem could be serious. After some research, Cai Min learned that Xiangyun yarn, which was once known as "soft gold", was limited by natural conditions, as well as the shackles of long cycle and low output value, and was quickly snubbed, once withdrew from the market stage, only in Foshan can still find some traces, and the design of Xiangyun yarn is also broken.
"Saving" Xiangyun yarn is imperative, and to make "soft gold" shine again, Cai Min deeply feels a heavy responsibility on her shoulders. "At that time, I was actually not very sure, because in my impression, the color of Xiangyun yarn clothes was dark and dark, and it was 'Grandma Shirt'." How can Xiangyun Yarn rush into the market again? And can it make a different impression? "As a designer, you must break through in design." What about dull colors? High-end evening dresses are not lacking in dark colors. Thinking about it for a moment, Cai Min strengthened her faith again and began to design Xiangyun yarn fashion.
At the 2021 Shenzhen Cultural Fair, Cai Min participated in the exhibition with her Xiangyun yarn evening dress design works. Ouyang Shaowei shooting
In 2006, Foshan was going to hold the first Miss Pearl River Contest, and the organizers invited Cai Min as the evening dress designer. "This is a godsend," Cai Min said, since it is necessary to break people's stereotypical cognition of Xiangyun yarn, and the combination and display of fashion and young elements, is not the best opportunity to revive Xiangyun yarn? "I was so fully committed to it." Cai Min still keeps photos of the contestants wearing small dresses of Xiangyun yarn, and in the spotlight, the Xiangyun yarn shines, adding a little charm to the young face. "Now there are still people with pictures and ask me, do you still have clothes?" Cai Min, who was under great pressure, finally smoothly pushed Xiangyun Yarn into the public vision again in a short period of time.
Persistent
Driven by cultural creativity, promote the integration of Xiangyun yarn into "fashion + life"
Time is like a white colt passing by, and today's Cai Min will still flip through the appearance of Xiangyun Yarn on the beauty pageant stage from time to time, and when she recalls the young contestants wearing Xiangyun Yarn qipao and singing "Story of a Small Town", she wets the corners of her eyes. The years are not spared, but also for Cai Min to add a little silver wire, "to leave their own Xiangyun yarn design works, the works will tell stories." ”
Running brands, setting up exhibition halls, holding exhibitions, doing cultural creations, cross-border combinations... Over the years, Cai Min has not stopped the pace of exploration. When Xiangyun Yarn made a high-profile appearance, Cai Min began to think about how to make Xiangyun Yarn enter people's lives.
Let Xiangyun yarn enter people's lives, Cai Min created the Xiangyun yarn costume art experience hall.
"The meaning of Xiugong Sauku is to make exquisite handmade creative products from Xiangyun yarn." Touching the paper-cut paintings framed by xiangyun yarn on the wall, Cai Min said. Similar products are hung up in the art experience hall that has not yet been officially opened to the public, from Chinese paintings, oil paintings, Su embroidery, mobile phone bags, notebooks, backpacks, ties, pillowcases, pajamas, a variety of products, "We just want to let Xiangyun yarn cover all aspects of life as much as possible." ”
Cai Min's Xiangyun yarn cultural and creative products cover Chinese paintings, oil paintings, mobile phone bags, backpacks, ties and so on.
And this also explains Cai Min's design concept - to serve people. "If the designed clothes just look good, what is the use of wearing them?" What's the use if it's just nice and not practical? The words are simple, but it is the concept that Cai Min has been adhering to for so many years. Looking at the gorgeous xiangyun yarn dress in the display cabinet, Cai Min also hopes to have more opportunities to exhibit works.
"Xiangyun yarn is born from ancient craftsmanship, and design can bring it new brilliance and vitality." She believes that including the design of high-end dresses, it is on the characteristics of the Xiangyun yarn fabric itself, and the design makes it have a richer connotation.
"But you can't just design for the sake of design." Cai Min has also been paying attention to the inheritance of Xiangyun yarn dyeing and finishing skills, and she looks forward to gathering and cultivating sunshine technicians with a professional platform under the guidance of the government, "We must be full of confidence in local culture and talents." ”
In his spare time, he played piano and chess calligraphy and painting, and occasionally showed a professional soprano singing voice, this designer who was intoxicated with xiangyun yarn design has never been limited, "I have always insisted on design, practical work, and look forward to making more people fall in love with xiangyun yarn through more of my own works." "The field of Xiangyun yarn design can bloom with a hundred flowers, which has also become Cai Min's expectation."
【Intern】Zhang Yanqing
[Southern Daily reporter] Ouyang Shaowei
【Author】 Ouyang Shaowei
【Source】 Southern Press Media Group South + client