Millennium Sichuan Brocade Shines at the Chengdu Universiade Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute | Hu Guangjun | Universiade

Chengdu, July 23 (Xinhua) - Sichuan based Sichuan brocade has a history of over a thousand years and is known as one of the "Four Famous Brocades" in China along with Yunnan brocade, Song brocade, and Zhuang brocade. Nowadays, this traditional weaving technique is holding hands with the 31st Chengdu Summer Universiade, showcasing the unique charm of China as an intangible cultural heritage to the world, and also reproducing the glory of the millennium long Silk Road in connecting East and West and the world.

On July 7th, Hu Guangjun, the director of Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute, displayed the ribbon patterns of the Universiade medals, including hibiscus flowers, sun birds, chessboard patterns, and the Universiade emblem. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xu Bingjie

Shu brocade flourished in the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period, flourished in the Han and Tang dynasties, and was named after its production in the Shu region. The ancient Shu kingdom had a developed sericulture industry, and the first king's name, "Silkworm Cong," symbolized the worship of silkworms. The bronze standing figure costumes unearthed from the Sanxingdui site have the characteristics of Shu brocade and Shu embroidery, the silk fabric imprints unearthed from the Jinsha site, and the bronze teapots from the Warring States period in Baihuatan, Chengdu, engraved with "picking mulberry trees"... The cultural relics unearthed from different periods seem to tell the origin and development of Shu brocade on this land.

"Looking at the red and wet places at dawn, the flowers are heavy in the city of Jinguan." This is a description of the beautiful scenery of Chengdu after the spring rain in the poem "Joyful Rain on a Spring Night" by the Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu. As early as the Han Dynasty, there was a Sichuan brocade management organization called "Jinguan" in Chengdu. In 2013, four weaving machine models unearthed from the Laoguanshan Han Tomb in Tianhui Town, Chengdu, are the earliest physical objects of this type of weaving machine discovered in China to date.

Nowadays, walking on the streets of Chengdu, Jinli, Jinjiang, Zhuojin Tower... everywhere you can see the compatibility of Sichuan brocade and the bloodline of this city.

This is a Sichuan brocade production shot on June 7th at the Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xu Bingjie

Sichuan brocade is not only deeply loved domestically, but also continuously sold overseas through the Silk Road. "During the Han and Tang dynasties, Sichuan brocade produced in Chengdu was already one of the main commodities circulating on the ancient Silk Road," said Hu Guangjun, director of the Chengdu Ancient Sichuan Brocade Research Institute. The Dunhuang document replicas returned by France to China clearly record the scene of Western merchants soliciting customers and selling Sichuan brocade on the Silk Road during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

The horses loaded with Sichuan brocade set off from Chengdu one after another. Accompanied by the crisp sound of bells and the shouting of merchants, Sichuan brocade gradually became a treasure on the Silk Road.

In 2006, the weaving technique of Sichuan brocade was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list. In 2009, the Shu brocade weaving technique, as an important component of traditional Chinese mulberry and silk weaving techniques, was included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List of Humanity.

Hu Guangjun introduced that Sichuan brocade adopts the technique of heavy warp and multiple weft, presenting structures such as plain, twill, satin, and a combination of these structural variations. "Shu brocade embodies the wisdom of the ancients." He said that from designing patterns to making them on a loom, it first requires a skilled craftsman to translate the patterns twice, converting the patterns and colors into a matrix pattern that can be wired. Then proceed with the assembly process. "This stage is the most difficult, equivalent to programming patterns through tens of thousands of silk threads to weave patterned brocade." Hu Guangjun said that after completing the assembly process, workers can transition to the weaving machine to start weaving.

On June 7th, Hu Guangjun, the director of Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute, introduced the principle of Shu brocade weaving machines to reporters. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xu Bingjie

"Some idioms nowadays, such as meticulous, intricate, and intricate, are all related to this aspect, indicating its complexity," said Hu Guangjun.

Nowadays, after development, Sichuan brocade is not only a representative cultural symbol of Chengdu, but also a symbol of cultural exchange between China and the West. As the Universiade approaches, Chengdu once again presents this proud business card to the world.

Walking into the Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute, a wooden loom is placed in the center of the lobby. In the production area, 8 looms are continuously weaving under the operation of workers, and the weaving parts and yarns in the corners seem to tell the story of this long period of time. The walls are hung with exquisite works.

The medal ribbon of the Chengdu Universiade comes from here. The main colors of the front and back are blue and red, incorporating elements such as hibiscus flowers, sun birds, chessboard patterns, etc., reflecting different colors under natural light... Hu Guangjun and the design team completed a delicate and complex pattern design on a ribbon about 2.5 centimeters wide and 105 centimeters long, and produced it using Sichuan brocade technology.

In 1971, Hu Guangjun began to work in Sichuan brocade at Chengdu Sichuan Brocade Factory. Now, he has been engaged in this industry for 53 years and is one of the few people who has mastered all the weaving techniques and processes. "I feel very honored to use the Universiade to promote the weaving skills of Sichuan brocade to the whole country and the world," he said.

The Chengdu Universiade themed stamp product "Sichuan Color Brocade Dream" designed with the same Sichuan brocade ribbon element has also attracted the attention of Sichuan brocade enthusiasts. Liu Kai, Head of Philatelic and Cultural Media Department of China Post Group Chengdu Branch, introduced that the gift box is composed of three parts. The first part is a three-dimensional die-cut picture of the theme of the Universiade; The second part is a reduced version of the Sichuan brocade ribbon; The third part is the Sichuan brocade stamp album, which focuses on stamp culture.

"Shu brocade is a unique business card of Chengdu, and its design was originally intended to reflect both this feature and the Universiade. The medal ribbon element effectively integrates these two aspects," said Liu Kai.

Entering the Chengdu Universiade franchise store, Rongbao, a mascot from the Tang costume series, wore clothes with Sichuan brocade patterns.

This is a cultural and creative product of the Chengdu Universiade, featuring Sichuan brocade elements, captured on June 7th at the Chengdu Ancient Shu Brocade Research Institute. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xu Bingjie

Hu Xuemei, Vice Dean of the School of Textile Engineering at Chengdu Textile College, introduced that these two Tang costumes were jointly designed and produced by a creative product research and development team composed of Sichuan brocade intangible cultural heritage masters, professional teachers, non heritage cultural and creative organizations, and various cultural and creative enterprises.

In recent years, Chengdu Textile Vocational College has built a platform for the inheritance and innovation of Sichuan brocade weaving skills based on Sichuan brocade, and established a talent training system for Sichuan brocade weaving skills.

Ma Dekun, a provincial-level Sichuan brocade weaving master, is the head of the school's master studio. Under his leadership, more and more students are interested in Sichuan brocade technology and pattern design and have joined the learning team.

"The weaving technique of Shu brocade is a wealth left by our ancestors to future generations, and it still has its vitality today." Ma Dekun introduced that in order to bring Shu brocade into more people's lives, they not only retained their original product design directions such as gifts and decorations, but also combined modern lifestyles and fashion trends to design and develop products in the fields of indoor soft decorations, stationery, small household appliances, and technological products.