Folk embroidery (Gaoping embroidery)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: folk embroidery (Gaoping embroidery)

Applicant: Gaoping City, Shanxi Province

Project No.: 853

Project No.: Ⅶ - 77

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: traditional art

Region: Shanxi Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Gaoping City, Shanxi Province

Protection unit: Gaoping Cultural Center

Brief introduction of folk embroidery (Gaoping embroidery)

Applicant: Gaoping City, Shanxi Province

Folk embroidery, also known as "needle embroidery", "tie flower" and "embroidery", is also known as "needlework" because it is mostly done by women. It is a kind of traditional folk craft, in which a needle is used to pierce the colored thread on the fabric to form a specific pattern or character. Folk embroidery products are indispensable gifts and decorations in folk activities. It has a long history and is closely related to the daily life of ordinary people. Since ancient times, there has been a saying that "whose daughter is skillful depends on the needle and thread". Folk embroidery has a wide range of themes, rich cultural connotation, and spread all over the north and south of the river, inside and outside the Great Wall. In Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, Guangdong, Sichuan and Beijing, folk embroidery has developed creatively and formed different regional styles.

Gaoping embroidery is a popular folk embroidery art in the area of Gaoping, Shanxi Province. According to the relevant remains, its history can be traced back to the mid Ming Dynasty. Gaoping embroidery can be divided into two types: silk thread embroidery and cloth sticking embroidery. Among them, silk thread embroidery includes flat needle embroidery, Dazi embroidery, Panjin embroidery, Pijin embroidery and so on. Flat needle embroidery has the most expressive power, seed embroidery is strong and wear-resistant, while pan gold embroidery and drape gold embroidery can produce magnificent effect. Cloth sticking embroidery is an art of making use of all kinds of cloth ends left in clothing cutting. When making, the cloth ends are cut into certain figures according to the idea, and then stacked and pasted on the bottom to lock the edge. The finished embroidery is simple, generous and colorful.

Gaoping embroidery has local characteristics in color matching. It is used to match black, blue, red, purple or light blue, gold, silver and other colors. In long-term practice, it has formed a set of color matching rules reflecting the unity of opposites. In order to enhance the decorative effect, Gaoping embroidery mostly adopts exaggeration and deformation. The works emphasize the spirit rather than the shape, which reflects the artistic ingenuity of the embroiderers and the aesthetic taste of the local people.