Weaving its magic

Contemporary appeal

Because of the intricacies of the weaving procedure and the delicacy of the raw material, including gold and silver foiled threads, the weaving process still cannot be fully replaced by machines. For a day of eight hours, two artisans can only weave 5 to 6 centimeters, hence the saying "an inch of brocade is worth an inch of gold".

For such a luxurious material, it is a marvel that its artisanal production technique has been preserved, but the institute goes even further with the vision to bridge the gap between traditional and the modern and introduce it into contemporary lifestyle.

"A concept our institute always upholds is'to make art more lively and life more artistic'," says Sun Yugang, director of the institute's product design department.

"It involves developing artistic works or functional products that are suited to the modern lifestyle, so that the general public today has access to, and can appreciate, the centuries-old craftsmanship that was once exclusively for royalty."

The institute has been working on developing innovative merchandise that captures the essence of the material and yet brings the technique closer to the modern lifestyle, from the high-end couture and hanfu (traditional Chinese attire), to memorabilia popular among the museum's visitors, such as brooches and scarves.

"Our creative products are an authentic embodiment of the time-honored tradition of yunjin craftsmanship. They are history that can be touched and appreciated, with genuine heritage woven into the very fibers," Sun says.