"A line of palace embroidery, the painting scene is carved at the beginning." In the Song Dynasty, this praises the beauty and vividness of Jing embroidery. Beijing embroidery, also known as palace embroidery, its exquisite materials, gorgeous colors, elegant style, everywhere reflects the graceful and luxurious temperament.
Today, Jingxiu has long gone out of the court and flown into the homes of ordinary people. In the hands of Liu Xiaoyan, the fifth-generation inheritor of Wu's Jingjing embroidery, it can be the finishing touch on Chinese clothing such as cheongsam, can be made into jewelry such as earrings and brooches, and can also be developed into trendy cultural and creative products. Years of love have added a sense of mission to Beijing embroidery, not only to inherit skills, but also to spread culture.
Liu Xiaoyan's work "Cloud Rising Dragon Ascension", completed in 3 years, is inspired by the dragon on the chest and back of the dragon robe in the Qing Dynasty.
Ears and eyes enter the gate of Beijing embroidery
Hand twisting embroidery needle, a strand of silk thread travels up and down, dots into lines, lines into surfaces, a plump and heavy peony petals are about to come out. Liu Xiaoyan quietly does embroidery work in the studio. The room is filled with embroidery works from her childhood to adulthood, and every stitch and thread is sewn by hand.
"My grandfather was a tailor, and when I was a child, when the winter and summer holidays came, I stayed by my grandfather's side, sewing and playing with small cloth heads, and I followed when my grandmother made embroidery, and slowly I would make some gadgets." The ears and eyes of childhood have always made Liu Xiaoyan always have a special love for embroidery culture.
In one exhibition, Liu Xiaoyan was fascinated by a group of embroidery works. "After talking to the staff next to me, I realized that this is our embroidery in Beijing, called Beijing embroidery." As a native of Beijing, Liu Xiaoyan's affinity for Beijing embroidery is born. "I used to embroider and play, but this time I know about Beijing embroidery, I must find a master to learn hard." In 2008, Liu Xiaoyan officially studied with Wu Lanchun from a Beijing embroidery family and became the fifth generation inheritor of Wu's Beijing embroidery.
Learning from the master, Liu Xiaoyan gradually touched the doorway of Beijing embroidery. "From stitching, thread arrangement to color matching, Beijing embroidery has its own rules. Taking the color matching alone, the flowers on the bright side are the same, the flowers on the dark side are the same, and the color matching of the leaves receiving light and backlighting is also different. "The deeper she learns, the more Liu Xiaoyan understands that behind Beijing embroidery is the investigation of the comprehensive ability of hand artists." We must not only learn to observe life, find inspiration from the flowers and trees around us, but also have an understanding of the cultural background, because every work cannot be separated from its cultural environment. ”
Remember that the master is polished one by one
The tools of Beijing embroidery include embroidery needles, embroidery bandages, embroidery racks, etc., embroidery threads are gold and silver threads, velvet threads, and the main stitching methods are circle gold, flat gold, seeding, etc. Different from gentle southern embroidery such as Su embroidery, the style of Beijing embroidery is dignified and atmospheric, and the pattern is thick and full. "For example, the most common flowers, Beijing embroidery is layered when embroidering, the layers are clear, it looks particularly neat and full, Su embroidery is different, it is the effect of blending, the pursuit of natural transition." In terms of color matching, traditional Beijing embroidery pays attention to five elements and five colors, namely blue, yellow, red, white, black, bright and gorgeous.
A complete Beijing embroidery embroidery, the technique is more than "embroidery". Before formal embroidery, there are still many processes that need to be completed.
"The first thing is to draw, trace the line drawing on the paper, and then start tying the drawing, using a needle to make the delicate holes." Liu Xiaoyan took out the tied sulfuric acid paper, and each pattern was outlined with dense pinholes. "Although there are so many holes, the back of the paper is flat when you touch it, which is sandpaper, otherwise it will affect the effect of brushing the manuscript later." The so-called "brush draft" is to brush a layer of special powder with a brush, the powder leaks out of the small hole, and the pattern is left on the fabric, and then it can be bandaged, wired, and embroidered.
Although full-time embroidery in Beijing has been a matter of nearly five years, Liu Xiaoyan's embroidery work has not stopped for more than 20 years, often embroidering clothes and embroidery at two or three o'clock in the middle of the night. "My mother said you keep messing with it, it's weird." Liu Xiaoyan said with a smile that embroidery is a very healing thing for her, "If you don't embroider for a day, you feel shortcomings." ”
In Liu Xiaoyan's studio, the lotus fan she made more than a decade ago is still carefully placed on the table. "This is all I have done little by little over the years, and I have saved it." Liu Xiaoyan said that embroidery is a delicate work, such as a ball of flowers on clothes, which takes 8 hours a day and a week. "This is a basic skill, and it must be solid." She always remembered Master's instructions: "No matter whether you are famous in the future or not, you must have work in your hands, so that you will not be afraid anywhere." ”
Liu Xiaoyan's studio is located in Lianggezhuang Village, Zhoukoudian Town, Fangshan, Beijing, and most of her works are hand-embroidered by herself.
Explore innovation and do a good job in inheriting skills
In recent years, Liu Xiaoyan has not only made traditional Beijing embroidery works and clothing, but also integrated Beijing embroidery elements into exquisite jewelry, which has won the favor of young people.
"One day I was embroidering at home, and suddenly a butterfly landed on my shelf, and I thought, although the butterfly is a very traditional pattern, but if you design it well, you can also make new ideas." Liu Xiaoyan uses the silhouette of a butterfly as a shape, designs it as earrings, presents it with Beijing embroidery techniques, and adopts different styles on the left and right ears, and sways between the ears after wearing, full of charm.
After that, she designed the Jiangshan series and the flower god series, all of which are complete sets of jewelry. Her ornaments are very popular with young people, and they can own a hand-embroidered piece without paying an expensive price.
Ancient for today, some changes, some unchanged. In Liu Xiaoyan's view, the inheritance of skills is not unchanged, as an art, it must reflect the thoughts of the creators.
"For example, this dragon embroidery, its pattern is still traditional, but I have made some fine adjustments in the details." Liu Xiaoyan gave an example, such as peacock feather thread, which used to be used to cover the whole dress, called "paving cui", reflecting the luxury of court embroidery. After making a slight adjustment, she still retained the peacock feather line, but instead of using it as a base color, it was used on the dragon's mane, which not only conformed to the texture of the mane itself, but also looked more majestic.
In addition to Beijing embroidery production, Liu Xiaoyan has also undertaken many intangible cultural heritage teaching and experience courses, and the compilation of Beijing embroidery theme books is also brewing. "When I first started embroidery, I felt very relaxed, but now the more I touch, the heavier the burden on my shoulders. I also wrote the book in the hope that this skill can be based on and leave a message for future generations, and I think this is also part of the inheritance. ”
For the future, Liu Xiaoyan hopes to rely on the studio to let partners who love this skill have a base for exchange and learning, so that more people can contact embroidery, fall in love with embroidery, devote themselves to embroidery, and carry forward this ancient skill.
(Original title: Liu Xiaoyan, the fifth generation inheritor of Wu's Jingjing embroidery, flying needle thread embroidery craft innovation)
Source: Beijing Daily reporter Chen Xueming
Process Editor: U027
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