侗家姑娘杨苗：织出千年侗锦的时尚路 | Dong Brocade

Yang Miao was born in a village of Dong brocade weavers. Her childhood clothes were all made by her mother, and the patterns came from the daily life of members of the Dong ethnic minority.

杨苗是一位八零后侗族姑娘。村里侗族的织娘人人都会织锦。从小，她穿的衣服就是母亲自己织的锦。衣服上的图案都来源有于侗族人的生活。

"These are little figures hand-in-hand in a sacrificial ceremony. These two snuggling birds are the harbingers of spring," Yang says. But these symbols of the Dong culture were not as precious to her during childhood – her appreciation to her culture came years later.

“小人手拉手，我们称之为踩歌堂。两个小鸟在一块儿，就叫喜鹊报春。”她说。这些都是侗族多耶文化的特色，但小时候的杨苗对此浑然不觉。

Yang left the remote Tongdao County in southwest China's Hunan Province to learn design in Changsha City, the provincial capital. 

后来杨苗外出求学，从湖南西南边陲的通道县到长沙市学习设计。

One time, she went back to her hometown with her classmates and professor to study the region's intangible cultural heritage. For the first time, she found innovation in the local ethnic culture and felt the energy in the hand-woven Dong brocade.

一次，她和老师同学们一起到家乡调研非物质文化遗产。这让她第一次从文化创意的角度审视自己的民族文化，感受到侗锦中的手工温度。

Artisans traditionally weaved more than they could sell. A shoulder cape that requires 40 days to finish would cost less than 100 yuan (14 US dollars). The younger generation had no incentive to inherit the skill. 

侗族的织娘很多，但侗锦的销路并不好。熟练的织娘织了四十多天的披肩，只能卖几十元。所以，在年轻一代手上，侗锦的手艺逐渐失传了。

"A lot of them became migrant workers to support their family. I wondered, however, do we really have to leave our hometown for better pay when we already have such a great craftsmanship?"

“大部分的年轻人都是外出务工，来增加自己家庭的经济收入。我就想，我们有这么好的手艺，为什么还要出去打工？” 

So, Yang set out to preserve her heritage by modernizing the embroidery art.

于是，杨苗便和同学们一起开始着手改良侗锦。

"We can create our own handicrafts featuring both the elements of the Dong culture and those of fashion. We combine the two and weave them using the traditional Dong techniques."

“我们可以打造一个本土的手工艺产品，把这种侗族元素和时尚元素结合起来，然后再利用传统的织艺把它织出来。”

Famous designers were invited to help design new patterns. The combination of the elements, however, didn't work well at the beginning. As the designers were not familiar with how the brocade was made, the patterns could not be achieved using traditional techniques. Yang's crew and the designers had to learn the essence of the Dong brocade from local weavers.

杨苗请来外界优秀的设计师为侗锦设计图案。一开始，新元素和传统的融合并不十分顺利。由于不太了解侗锦的织造方式，他们设计的图案织娘们织不出来。于是，设计师和杨苗的老师同学们回归本源，向织娘们学习传统纹样的设计。

Yang has fully dedicated herself to the development and preservation of the Dong brocade since 2011. She established her own brand and introduced new materials and colors, fusing ethnic and modern aesthetics.

2011年，杨苗开始专门从事侗锦产品的开发。她创立了自己的品牌，革新了材质和色彩，让侗族传统元素真正融入现代设计之中。

The linen products she created with the team even won a golden medal at the first Hunan Cultural Creative Design Competition.

其中，团队设计的亚麻系列产品荣获首届湖南省文创设计大赛金奖。

Two of her collections claimed the top prize.

这次获奖的作品分成两个系列。

The "Wood" series showcased a color palette inspired by the stilt houses of the Dong people. The change of color imitated the mosaic of the old and new planks. The red was inspired by a pair of little red boots hanged outside of a stilt house. Meanwhile, the "Blue" collection found its roots in the Dong people's traditional costumes and headscarves.

杨苗介绍说，“木系列”以原木棕色为基调，配色来自侗家的吊脚楼，颜色的变化就像是木楼上新旧木板颜色的拼接。中间穿插的那抹红色，则是有一次见到吊脚楼边上晾了一双小孩的红靴子，而突发的灵感。“蓝系列”设计源于侗族人蓝色的衣服、蓝白相间的头帕，这是侗族服饰中最重要的色彩。

The success of Yang's products brought more income to the local weavers, and attracted more young talents to work on the Dong brocade back in their hometown. 

产品的成功为村里的织娘们带来了收入，吸引着年轻人回乡从事侗锦的相关工作。

"They may choose not to go to factories to work long hours on the assembly line. They can stay home and teach their skills. In this way they could make a living and take care of their family," Yang said. 

“现在的年轻人她可能就不去广东的某个电子厂，去流水线上做工人，打工挣钱。她可以在自己家里传承自己的手艺，还可以照顾老人小孩。”

"The weavers are happy, too. They've been desperate to be recognized with a sense of belonging."

杨苗说，“织娘们也特别高兴。她需要有一个被大家认可、有一种归属感的感觉。”

"The Dong brocade has become part of my life. And I hope it could affect more people's lives too."

“侗锦是我生活的一部分 ，也希望它能走进更多人的生活。”

For this reason, Yang and her team decided to donate their reward of 300,000 yuan (more than 43,000 US dollars) to build a Dong Brocade Culture Museum in Tongdao County. 

为此，杨苗和她的团队决定将获得的30万元奖金都捐出来，在通道县建造侗锦文化博物馆。

"Our brocade has been exhibited in Milan, Paris, London and New York," she said. The once little-known Dong culture in far-flung rural areas is now spread across the world.

“我们的东西去过米兰、巴黎、伦敦、纽约。”他们不仅将侗族文化带出了大山，还让它走向了世界。

Director：Qi Mantong

Editor：Qi Mantong, Gao Xingzi

Filmed by: Ning Nan

Designer：Li Xiaojie

Article Written by: Zhu Siqi

Copy Editor: Nadim Diab

Producer：Wen Yaru

Chief Editor: Liu Hui

Supervisor：Pang Xinhua

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