Weaving a bright future

Work of art CHINA DAILY

The latest measures to preserve and promote Zhuang brocade are making inroads at home and abroad, in turn giving local weavers such as Li Donglian the confidence to contribute more to the development of their communities.

"Our project uses community skills workshops to bring together the preservation and productivity of this traditional art, providing residents with meaningful employment by giving them opportunities to promote their ethnic brocade fabric and other products," said He Ka, head of Guangxi Jinzhuangjin Culture and Art Co. Her group's decade-long Zhuang brocade work in Banchi helped train Li, who in turn now trains nearly one-third of the more than 170 village households.

The arrangement of Li's team－whose youngest weaver is 12 and oldest is 76－allows the adult women to continue taking care of farm-work and family. Weaving brocade for a few hours a day can boost their income significantly, allowing a single household to bring in up to 20,000 yuan ($3,100) a year.

Local authorities have lauded He's brocade community workshops, with at least six other similar projects launched in the surrounding areas.

The resurgence in Zhuang brocade is set to expand beyond the region, with He spearheading collaborations with Italian designers to tap global markets.

Her international team has been working on novel designer products, such as high-end handbags, that bank on the beauty of Zhuang brocade. Initial orders from Italy hit more than 4 million yuan by May, despite pandemic business disruptions.

"We are very confident of Zhuang design, and I firmly believe in retaining its beauty through our own brand and genuine heritage," He said.

Italian designer Giancarlo Mossi Borella, who has created winning designs for global fashion houses, said his collaborations with He are based on his deep interest in Chinese culture and its inspiring originality.

"Consumers will still go for quality products. No one is doing what we are doing in Europe. With these Zhuang brocade designs, we are at the forefront of the industry," he said.

"We need to build on branding based on heritage and the original aesthetics, integrating the traditional with the modern," Borella added.

Last year, He also established a Zhuang brocade cultural promotion association in Italy to further broaden the presence of the ethnic heritage in the West.