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Survival, Revival and Continuance: The Menglian Weaving Revival Project

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2013

He Shuzhong  and
Lyndel Prott
He Shuzhong
Affiliation:
Founder and Chairman, Beijing Cultural Heritage Protection Center; http://en.bjchp.org/
Lyndel Prott
Affiliation:
Hon. Professor, University of Queensland, Australia; [email protected]
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Abstract

Recent efforts to ensure the survival of cultural diversity in a globalized world have led to efforts to preserve, revitalize, and continue craft traditions in marginal communities. This article records an effort to support the distinctive Dai culture in the province of Yunnan, China, by first establishing an archive of documents, photographs, and oral records of the traditions of a Dai community in the county of Menglian and following that by reviving and expanding the traditional weaving carried out by Dai women. It shows the complexity of this kind of activity, the need to encourage younger members of the community to learn the distinctive techniques of weaving and to develop a niche market for its products. Group crafts and traditions have often developed and varied over centuries; further adaptations may be needed to restore viability. Reinstatement of quality improved its value by adopting wider looms, better dyeing techniques, higher quality thread, and by encouraging new creative efforts in the development of the final product, thus providing better economic returns to the weavers and the community in general. In providing an exemplary process for isolated and dispirited communities to improve their economic circumstances and reinvigorate their ethnic traditions, it demonstrates the significant contribution that nongovernmental organizations can make to this kind of work.

Type
Research Article
Information
International Journal of Cultural Property , Volume 20 , Issue 2 , May 2013 , pp. 201 - 219
Copyright
Copyright © International Cultural Property Society 2013 

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