Wang Zhongping, inheritor of Changsha palm leaf weaving
2024-04-18
This is Changsha palm leaf weaving, a traditional folk craft that uses palm leaves only planted in South China as raw materials to weave animals and objects of various shapes. It has been included in the third batch of provincial-level intangible cultural heritage list.
Wang Zhongping, 41 years old this year, learned from Wang Wending, a master of Chinese arts and crafts and a representative inheritor of provincial-level intangible cultural heritage.
“The palm leaf weaving technique will remind people of their childhood. Through the inheritance of generations of craftsmen, woven articles have become handicrafts with artistic value.” Wang Zhongping began to learn this craft at the age of 10, and she has a deep affection for it.
“It is easy to get started with palm leaf weaving, but it is difficult to make fine handicrafts,” said Wang Zhongping. Works woven with fresh palm leaves can not be preserved easily, as they will become deformed in a few days. You need to first fold the fresh palm leaves according to their patterns, tie them tightly, and then put them in water to boil. After dried in the sun, they can be used for weaving. In this way, the woven products, with bright colors and realistic shapes, can resist to deformation.
It took Wang Zhongping more than half a year to consult books and decide the patterns when she wove a crane for the first time. She stayed up late for two consecutive days to weave the crane. “The palm leaf weaving technique is complex, and it needs brain power and endurance.”
With nimble hands and rich imagination, Wang Zhongping transformed ordinary palm leaves into flowers, birds, insects and fish. Her work “Crane Dance” was nominated for the 16th Shanhua Award of Chinese Folk Literature and Art.
Wang Zhongping believes that the palm leaf weaving skills should be promoted in schools. She teaches courses such as “Chinese Folk Culture” and “Palm Leaf Weaving Skills” at Hunan Women’s University, displays her woven works to students and provides training at Changsha Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition Hall.
This year, Wang Zhongping has a new idea of making a palm leaf-woven dragon into a brooch, so people can wear it on clothes as a practical decoration. “I plan to develop cultural and creative products woven with palm leaves such as brooches, earrings, rings, and bracelets, and promote palm leaf weaving culture in popular commercial districts and scenic spots in Changsha through college students’ practical activities.”
