A Journey of Chinese Handicrafts
Writer Profile
Shinobu Okumura
Owner of Mingei OkumuraKeio University alumni
Shinobu Okumura
Owner of Mingei OkumuraKeio University alumni
Fascinated by the beauty of indigo dyeing, I traveled throughout Asia and eventually arrived in Guizhou Province, China. Guizhou has been called the poorest province, but the excellence of the handicrafts preserved by its ethnic minorities is overwhelming compared to other regions. Take, for example, their traditional costumes. They spin thread from cotton, weave it, dye it, and sometimes apply batik or embroidery to create everyday wear for their families. In the past, women in each household were responsible for every step of this process. The traces of mending and re-wearing old clothes look like art in themselves. Just as Japanese "boro" textiles continue to soar in price on the global market, similar items from Guizhou and Yunnan in China are also increasing in value worldwide. The affection of a mother projected onto a single piece of cloth moves those who see it.
I travel all over China in search of handmade tools for daily life, not just in Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, which I have compiled into this book. At such times, I suddenly remember the days when I studied economic geography in Professor Noriyuki Sugiura's seminar during my undergraduate years and walked all over Tokyo for fieldwork. Although the perspective and approach are different, I have been walking around somewhere ever since then.
The first half of this book covers Yunnan Province. Located in western China, Yunnan is larger in area than Japan. The southern part, bordering Vietnam and Myanmar, is subtropical with a so-called Southeast Asian climate and culture, but the northern regions where Tibetans live often exceed 3,000 meters in altitude, and life there is completely different. Naturally, the tools for daily life are also different.
On the other hand, Guizhou Province, described in the second half, borders Yunnan but has a plateau-like climate overall. While the summer heat is relatively mild, it is a land with short sunshine hours, as the saying goes, "No three days of sunshine in a row." Unique traditional cultures still remain in the lives of the ethnic minorities who prefer to live in the mountains. The hot pot made from the digestive fluids of goat and cow stomachs eaten by the Dong people, which I experienced in the southeastern part, is considered a "strange food" even within the notoriously deep and broad food culture of the Chinese people.
Although it is a travelogue, there is so little information available for those thinking of traveling to this area, so I have included helpful information. I want many people to know about these lands where uniqueness can be felt from any angle—language, festivals, food, and crafts.
*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.