The picture shows Gyatso (first from right) explaining to an apprentice how to use needle and thread.
The picture shows the various types of Tibetan boots on the display case.
The picture shows Gyatso explaining the production process of the sole of the Tibetan boot.
The picture shows the Tibetan hat on the display case.
The picture shows the mask tourism products made by Gyatso and craftsmen.
The picture shows Gyatso's toolkit and various tools.
Starting from the county seat of MozhuGongka in Lhasa City, to Ladong Village in Tangjia Township, the water of the Mozhu River in winter is as green as jade, and the ancient Ladong Village is quiet and peaceful. This time, the inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of Lhasa City and the fifth generation inheritor of the traditional costume making skills of Daplinai in Mozhugongka County, who we are looking for, lives in Ladong Village.
"The team stationed in the village and the people of Nimu County have ordered dozens of pairs of Tibetan boots, and we have to complete these orders before the Tibetan New Year." The 62-year-old Gyatso has a smile on his face. In a house of only a few tens of square meters, Gyatso and his apprentices are in a hurry to make custom-made Tibetan boots. "Pay attention to the winding of the thread, the position of the needle and the number of needles, do not make a mistake, this is the wealth left to us by the older generation, but also the craft we rely on to survive, the wrong needle affects not only the use effect, but also our reputation." Therefore, no matter how tight the order is, we cannot relax the string in our hearts. Gyatso was busy with the work at hand while instructing the workers and apprentices.
The Tibetan boots made by the Gyatso family are mostly made of xenon, wool, leather, felt, satin, linen, etc., which are characterized by the upward bending of the toes and more three-dimensionality; the bottom is made of cowhide and densely sewn with thick wool or cotton thread, with a thickness of more than 1 cm, and the ankle part is sewn with three layers of their own wool woven with xenon and carved cowhide. The hardest part of a boot is to tie the sole. The thick leather soles need to be pierced one by one with awls and threaded one by one with needles, which is completely manual work, and Gyatso and the workers' hands are full of blisters and scars, and no matter how thick the thimbles are used, it does not matter. In contrast, it is easier to make a shoe waist and shoe barrel. After the sole is done, it is not yet finished sewn together with the waist and upper of the shoe, and it is necessary to use small wooden sticks of different sizes to prop up the shoe so that it will not be deformed.
"Our family's Tibetan boots are very popular, priced at 1300 yuan a pair. A pair of shoes, an adult can wear for a lifetime, if the sole is worn out, you can remove it and replace it with a new sole. You see these shoes have been worn for decades, and they are still so strong. Gyatso lifted an old pair of boots on the shelf and told reporters.
In the living room on the second floor of the Gyatso family, the walls are covered with various Tibetan drama masks, which he says can no longer remember whether they were made by his grandfather or his grandfather, which are all testimonies to the family's tailoring skills; on a row of wooden shelves, There are Tibetan boots, Tibetan hats and tools used by some years of tailors, as if telling the story of a family of tailors. It is understood that the tailoring skills of the Daplinai family, where Gyatso was located, originated around 1560 AD, and the founder was the famous tailor Giger, who was often invited by monasteries and nobles to sew robes, masks, and noble shoes and hats and costumes. He also sewed many handicrafts such as tents, dancing god masks, Tibetan opera masks, and religious pendants for various temples around Mozhugongka County. So far, in the inheritance of more than 450 years, its sewing technology and craftsmanship have become increasingly perfect, and it is unique and widely praised among many folk tailoring skills in Tibet.
In order to pass on this skill, his father began teaching the art when Gyatso and the other two brothers were very young. However, later, the two brothers, for various reasons, could not continue to devote themselves to better study, and the father pinned his hopes on Gyatso. Under his father's persistent teaching and Gyatso's own efforts, he gradually became the best inheritor of the family's skills, and each costume from his hand was exquisite and durable, with strong practicality and artistry, and became famous in the local area. Every national handicraft product he made, whether it is clothing, masks, Tibetan hats or Tibetan boots, is exquisitely crafted, and the traditional production techniques and modern production concepts are perfectly combined, making every ethnic handicraft from the Daplinai family generally loved by farmers and herdsmen in Mozhugongka County.
Since Gyatso learned tailoring skills at home, he was unable to go to the academy to learn the knowledge in books. As a tailor, he cannot but understand the size, with years of accumulated experience, Gyatso has also trained a pair of "fire eyes and golden eyes", visually measuring the height and fatness of customers can be "tailor-made". In recent years, with the help of the Mozhu Gongka County Party Committee and the government, Gyatso has begun to frequently participate in various exhibitions, skill competitions and other activities, so that Daplinai's name is known to more people, and orders have also increased. The Tibetan Opera Troupe of the Autonomous Region and the Tibetan Opera Teams around Lhasa also came to order various Tibetan opera masks and costumes. With the help of Gyatso's own efforts and the help of others, the tailoring skills of the Daplinai family have gradually become famous, the workmanship is more systematic and refined, the production concept of "pure hand" and "quality first", the superb tailoring technology, the sincere and persistent character of the inheritors, etc., make the Daplinai tailoring skills from the product, quality, and the character of the inheritors have been widely praised. Gyatso has won many honors with his exquisite craftsmanship: the Mask of Daplin nai Tibetan Opera he made won the finalist award of the "2017 Tourism Commodity Competition with Chinese Characteristics"; the Tibetan Opera Mask and Women's Tibetan Boots made for Zhangda Village were rated as the first qualified products of Lhasa's light textile handicraft industry; in 2018, he was named the representative inheritor of the traditional costume making skills of Daplinai, an intangible cultural heritage project of Lhasa City.
"As a inheritor of ancient skills, what has been handed down from generation to generation is not only an important cultural heritage for our family, but also for the Tibetan people, and I don't want to break it in my own generation." With the dividends of the state's policy on the protection of intangible cultural heritage, we also want it to play a greater and more important role. In order to further inherit and carry forward the handicraft skills handed down by his ancestors, Gyatso established the Daplinna Family Tailoring Skills Co., Ltd. in 2015, and in his generation, he broke the ancestral precepts of this skill, and Gyatso selected diligent and talented young people to work in the company around the family and the village, and selflessly passed on the tailoring skills to them. It is understood that there are now 6 workers in the Daplinai Family Tailoring Skills Co., Ltd., and many apprentices have set up their own portals or gone out to work after completing their studies. At the same time, Gyatso also receives students from various schools to visit the workshop for free, and actively participates in the "Intangible Cultural Heritage into the Campus" activity organized by MozhuGongka County to promote and disseminate intangible cultural heritage.
Gyatso's proud protégé, Qiongga, has started his own business with his craft. Qiongga said: "I have come to learn the art of tailoring since I was 14 years old, in life the teacher cares about and educates us like a father, in the teaching of skills he is a particularly strict teacher, he will teach us the tailoring skills of his own patience, but also often teach us to put quality first, I have always remembered the teacher's teachings, pay close attention to product quality." Nowadays, the number of orders in the store is also increasing, and life is getting better and better. ”
Gyatso was most pleased with the enthusiasm of his daughter Bai Ma Kaju and son-in-law Lobsang for this family skill. After more than ten years of careful teaching, Bai Ma Ka Zhu has been rated as a representative inheritor at the county level, and Lausanne can also complete many works independently. Whenever a batch of orders is completed, Lausanne drives his own off-road vehicle to Lhasa to deliver goods. "Although young people are now inclined to go out to work, they just want to learn this skill in a down-to-earth manner, and the most basic skills have been mastered, but they also want to continue to study in depth in order to better inherit it." Lobsang said shyly.
The establishment of the company not only carried forward the traditional skills of the Gyatso family, but also helped the local villagers to get rid of poverty and become rich. When asked by the reporter whether there was any idea of setting up the company in the city, Gyatso said: "In the home to engage in craftsmanship will be more practical and quiet, although the city may develop better, but the operation of their own do not understand, just want to do a good job in the craft." ”
It is Gyatso's dream to pass on this craft that has lasted for more than 450 years and lead the villagers to get rid of poverty and become well-off together. Gyatso said: "My goal is to build a factory building after the Tibetan New Year, establish a base for transmission, supervise the existing inheritors, cultivate the young generation of outstanding inheritors, solve the employment of some people, promote the development of cultural tourism, expand the influence of Daplinai skills in Tibet, and further inherit and carry forward the national handicrafts." I believe that under the good policies of the state, my dream will be realized. ”
With the continuous efforts of Gyatso and many Daplinai craftsmen, the handicrafts produced by Daplinai Family Tailoring Skills Co., Ltd. are becoming more and more sophisticated, and integrate use, collection and art appreciation, I believe that with the help of the vigorous development of Tibet's tourism industry, Daplinai national handicrafts will continue to open up new markets with their unique production methods and rich cultural connotations.