Legacy of Artisanal Elegance 匠韵遗风

Suzhou embroidery has a history of more than 2,000 years. Its attention to color and composition has amazed people both at home and abroad throughout history. Whether it is double-sided embroidery or random stitch embroidery, they are all vivid and almost indistinguishable from the real, embodying the crystallization of Chinese wisdom. Suzhou embroidery is a cultural symbol of the Jiangnan region and an embodiment of traditional Chinese aesthetics. Let us feel a sense of tranquility and delicacy from the stitches of Suzhou embroidery and experience the spirit of craftsmanship passed down from generation to generation.

Suzhou embroidery is the general term for embroidery products in the Suzhou area and is a traditional folk art in Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. Suzhou embroidery, together with Xiang embroidery, Shu embroidery, and Yue embroidery, is known as the four famous embroideries in China, and Suzhou embroidery ranks first among them.

01 A Thousand Years of Origin and Everlasting Renewal

Suzhou embroidery has a history of more than 2,000 years. It is said to originate from "Nv Hong," the granddaughter of Zhong Yong, who first made embroidered clothes. The exquisite Nine Dragons on the dragon robes of ancient emperors were embroidered using Suzhou embroidery techniques, making Suzhou embroidery the embroidery of emperors.

During the Tang and Song Dynasties, Suzhou embroidery techniques further developed. Especially in the Southern Song Dynasty, Suzhou became the economic and cultural center of China. Suzhou embroidery, with its exquisite embroidery techniques and unique style, also became an important decorative item for the court and the aristocracy at that time.

In the Ming Dynasty, Suzhou embroidery had already become a widespread sideline product in the Suzhou area, forming a prosperous situation of "every family raising silkworms and every household embroidering." Later, the rise of the Wu School of Painting represented by Tang Bohu and Shen Zhou further promoted its development. Suzhou embroidery artists drew on painting works, and their embroidered works were vivid, with the charm of ink and brush brought to the fullest, earning the reputation of "painting with needles" and "ingenious craftsmanship surpassing nature."

The Qing Dynasty was the heyday of Suzhou embroidery. At that time, Suzhou was even known as the "Embroidery City." During the Daoguang period, Ding Pei, a woman from Suzhou, completed China's first professional embroidery work "Embroidery Manual." In Suzhou alone, there were as many as 65 merchants specializing in embroidery.

Until the period of the Republic of China, due to years of war and chaos, the Suzhou embroidery industry once declined. After 1950, the state specifically established the Suzhou Embroidery Research Institute and opened embroidery training classes. The stitches of Suzhou embroidery have developed from the original 18 types to more than 40 types today. In the wave of Chinese cultural renaissance, Suzhou embroidery has once again received attention and promotion.

02 An Array of Splendors, Exquisite Embroidery Techniques

In the flow of thousands of years, the stitches of Suzhou embroidery have become increasingly rich and can be regarded as unique.

The even stitch embroidery, as a basic stitch, has lines closely arranged in an orderly and even manner. It is commonly used for embroidering patterns with neat edges and single colors. Through it, the outlines of flowers and plants are outlined, giving a clear sense of boundary.

The random stitch embroidery is even more ingenious. It breaks the conventional rules and uses lines of different lengths, thicknesses, and densities to cross and layer one on top of the other. From a distance, the colors are rich and the layers are distinct. Up close, the stitches are unrestrained and free.

Suzhou double-sided embroidery, also known as Suzhou embroidery on both sides, in the embroidery process on the same piece of base fabric, embroiders the images on both the front and back sides. The outlines are exactly the same, and the patterns are completely different, yet the presentation effect is vivid.

In addition to these, there are also commonly used techniques such as rolling stitch embroidery, darning stitch embroidery, and flat stitch embroidery.

Due to the extremely high requirements of Suzhou embroidery for threads, the materials mostly use natural silk threads. This kind of silk thread has a soft luster and a supple texture, which can perfectly present a delicate texture.

To embroider a realistic peony picture, the embroiderers will select red silk threads of different shades, from the deep red at the root of the petals to the light pink at the edges. Through skillful color transitions, the flowers are made to bloom brilliantly, making the layers more abundant. Moreover, Suzhou embroidery is also good at using the twist changes of silk threads. The parts embroidered with loosely twisted silk threads are fluffy and soft, while those with tightly twisted silk threads are firm and upright.

Every excellent work of Suzhou embroidery is the meticulous carving of the embroiderers in the use of silk threads, using threads as ink to paint a splendid chapter on the brocade.

03 Emotions Embedded in Embroidery, Depicting the Various Aspects of China

As a handicraft, Suzhou embroidery not only has superb techniques but also presents vivid visual effects. The types of patterns are complete and diverse, full of unique Chinese charm.

1. Flowers, Birds, and Insects

The ancients were good at using traditional Chinese paintings to create pictures of flowers and birds. Suzhou embroidery has a deep connection with painting. In terms of pattern selection, flowers, birds, and insects are extremely common and deeply loved themes in Suzhou embroidery.

The peonies in spring are luxurious, the lotus in summer stands gracefully, the chrysanthemums in autumn have various forms, and the plum blossoms in winter are proud and frosty. Combined with the dynamics of birds and insects in the same season, they fully display the beauty of natural life.

2. Portraits of People

The portrait embroidery in Suzhou embroidery can accurately capture the charm and emotions of people.

For example, when embroidering ancient ladies, the embroiderers combine various stitches such as flat stitch embroidery and hair embroidery to carve the facial contours and expressions of the characters;

The patterns on the clothing are displayed using even stitch embroidery, darning stitch embroidery, etc. From the exquisite rolled edges of the collars to the gorgeous patterns of the skirts, all of them manifest the elegant temperament of ancient women.

3. Landscapes and Architecture

The landscape scenery in Suzhou embroidery often takes traditional Chinese landscape paintings as the blueprint and integrates the unique charm of Suzhou embroidery.

The distant mountains and ridges use random stitch embroidery to simulate the majestic momentum of the mountains, and the light and dark, far and near layers of the mountains are presented through the transition of colors;

The rivers, lakes, and seas in the middle scene, the sparkling water surface is either expressed by the density and luster changes of the silk threads, or combined with special stitches to simulate the dynamics of water flow, and there are also willows by the lake, showing full softness;

The nearby villages, houses, pavilions, and towers, the structural lines of the buildings are clear and regular, often outlined with even stitch embroidery;

The internal details are filled with flat stitch embroidery, and the surroundings are embellished with flowers and trees of the four seasons, perfectly integrating the natural and humanistic landscapes and depicting a peaceful and distant poetic world.

4. Auspicious Patterns

Auspicious patterns carry the thousands of years of cultural heritage and beautiful wishes of the Chinese nation and are widely circulated in Suzhou embroidery. Common ones include "Three Stars of Fortune, Prosperity, and Longevity", "Eight Treasures Pattern", and zodiac patterns, all presented with fine stitches.

These patterns have been passed down from generation to generation and run through all aspects of people's lives, becoming an indispensable part of Suzhou embroidery culture.

Landscapes can show the interest of distance and proximity, pavilions and towers have a profound structure, people can have vivid expressions, flowers and birds can show the state of intimacy.

The embroiderers, with their superb skills, hide the colorful vividness of nature and the beautiful wishes of humanity in every stitch and thread of Suzhou embroidery.

From the past to the present, Suzhou embroidery, as a treasure of China that has been passed down for thousands of years, the exploration and inheritance of this intangible cultural heritage are far more complex and rich than we imagine.

Our team will continue to be committed to popularizing various knowledge of Suzhou embroidery. In the next issue, we will unveil the modern veil of Suzhou embroidery for everyone.

Suzhou embroidery, deeply rooted in the gentle soil of the Jiangnan water towns, is a shining pearl of the Jiangnan regional culture.

It is a dreamlike picture scroll interwoven with silk and threads, an elegant melody composed by needles and cloth. From the embroidery chambers in ancient times to the modern fashion stages, Suzhou embroidery, with its delicate stitches, exquisite patterns and profound cultural connotations, tells one moving story after another, becoming an indispensable cultural treasure in the treasure house of traditional Chinese culture.

01 The Charm of Jiangnan, Born Unique

The unique geographical environment of the Jiangnan region has nurtured a delicate and graceful cultural temperament, and Suzhou embroidery is a vivid embodiment of this temperament.

The Jiangnan scenery with small bridges, flowing water, white walls, and black tiles has endowed Suzhou embroidery with a fresh and elegant color tone. Common colors in embroidery works, such as lake blue, light pink, and off-white, are just like the hazy misty rain in the Jiangnan water towns, gentle and full of poetry.

At the same time, the exquisite layout and scene changes in Jiangnan gardens have also provided rich compositional inspiration for Suzhou embroidery. The embroiderers skillfully incorporate pavilions, terraces, towers, winding paths, and secluded scenes into the embroidery works, creating a unique sense of spatial beauty.

In traditional Jiangnan life, Suzhou embroidery was once a symbol of women's talents and an important element of home decoration.

The young ladies from wealthy families studied embroidery from an early age and took their exquisite embroidery skills as pride. The embroidery works were not only used to decorate their own screens, bed curtains, and clothing but also as precious gifts to relatives and friends.

Deep in the secluded courtyards of boudoirs, emotions are conveyed through embroidery, and every stitch and thread shows extraordinary craftsmanship. It is precisely the outstanding essence and elegance of the Jiangnan soil that makes Suzhou embroidery born here unique.

02 Inheritors as Envoys, Embroidery Works as Bonds

Yao Huifen, a representative inheritor of Suzhou embroidery as a national intangible cultural heritage and a master of Chinese embroidery art, was born into an embroidery family in Suzhou, Jiangsu. She developed a strong interest in Suzhou embroidery from an early age.

She successively learned embroidery techniques from Mou Zhihong, the third-generation inheritor of realistic embroidery, and Ren Xuanxian, a master of Chinese arts and crafts.

Yao Huifen pioneered the "Simple Needle Embroidery" technique and made bold explorations in Chinese ink freehand embroidery and portrait embroidery, achieving many breakthroughs in embroidery techniques and aesthetic connotations.

Her "Simple Needle Embroidery" work "Four Beauties Picture", when participating in the "China Week of the World Fiber Art Exhibition" in the UK, was viewed multiple times by the researchers of the British Museum and finally became the first contemporary Chinese embroidery work collected by the British Museum.

Zhang Xue, a young Suzhou embroidery inheritor, an "85er" and known as the "Suzhou Embroidery Gentleman".

Traditionally, embroidery belonged to "women's work". As a man, Zhang Xue did not initially inherit the family business. He majored in international economics and trade in university and was engaged in futures investment after graduation. His life was originally unrelated to traditional handicrafts.

Once when he returned to his hometown, Zhang Xue found that Zhenhu, which was prosperous in the past and was said to have "eight thousand embroiderers", had very few practitioners in his generation.

"Among our generation, those under 35 years old engaged in Suzhou embroidery are less than 50."

Regretting the lack of successors in traditional craftsmanship, Zhang Xue resolutely picked up the silver needle with the posture of a seven-foot man and became an "embroidery gentleman".

He integrates traditional embroidery techniques into modern aesthetics and explores new ideas for the inheritance and development of Suzhou embroidery culture. His representative work "Starry Sky" integrates 25 traditional stitches and is called the "Stitch Textbook in the Suzhou Embroidery Field" by the industry.

03 Through a Thousand Years, Still Shining Today

As time goes by, Suzhou embroidery still shines brightly in modern life scenes.

In the field of high-end home decoration, Suzhou embroidery screens have become the finishing touch to show taste and style.

Suzhou embroidery screens with the theme of Jiangnan water towns, placed in the center of the living room, create a quiet and elegant spatial atmosphere; Suzhou embroidery throw pillows with flower and bird patterns add a touch of liveliness and warmth to the sofa, allowing people to feel the beauty and tranquility of nature in their busy urban lives.

On the fashion runway, Suzhou embroidery is even more perfectly integrated with modern design, bursting out with new charm.

Designers apply Suzhou embroidery elements to high-end custom clothing, combining traditional embroidery stitches with modern tailoring, using the delicate textures of Suzhou embroidery to decorate the hemlines, collars, and cuffs of skirts, making the clothing both modern and fashionable with simplicity and grandeur, while not losing the elegant charm of traditional culture.

Models wearing Suzhou embroidery clothing walk on the T-stage, just like the spiritual fairies from the Jiangnan water towns, presenting the beauty of the East to the whole world.

In addition, Suzhou embroidery is also widely used in cultural and creative products, such as bookmarks, notebooks, mobile phone cases, etc.

Bookmarks printed with Suzhou embroidery patterns are small and exquisite. When people open the pages of a book, they can feel the influence of traditional culture; Suzhou embroidery notebooks, with the exquisite embroidery on the cover, make writing more ceremonial; the Suzhou embroidery patterns on mobile phone cases add a unique artistic charm to modern technological products.

The national style atmosphere of these cultural and creative products comes to the fore, allowing Suzhou embroidery to enter people's daily lives in a more approachable manner and become an important carrier for inheriting and promoting Jiangnan culture.

In the context of the Internet, the application and inheritance of Suzhou embroidery elements are even more extensive.

In the mobile game "Ni Shui Han" (逆水寒), Suzhou embroidery is combined with the costumes and scenes of Chinese-style games, allowing players to experience its ancient charm in entertainment.

For example, the fashion "Suzhou Charm Flowing Fragrance" adopts the classic cheongsam design. The hemlines and cuffs of the women's clothing have exquisite embroidery decorations, paired with chiffon small shawls and small bows, fully showing the elegant temperament of Suzhou ladies; the men's outer robes are matched with moonlight white and gold thread embroidery, and the inner lining is large-scale Suzhou embroidery, with the overall splendor without being flashy.

In addition, with the help of the "digital economy" trend, in the modern scene, an embroidery digital cloud platform is built, such as "Cloud Suzhou Embroidery Town", and official Douyin accounts are established, etc., to create a new "physical + virtual" digital industry model, using network platforms, in the form of short videos, live broadcasts, etc., to let more people know about Suzhou embroidery and promote its dissemination and sales.

03 Through a Thousand Years, Still Shining Today

In conclusion, the integration of Suzhou embroidery in modern scenarios is becoming more and more harmonious and extensive. With the strong support of the country and the efforts of one intangible cultural heritage envoy after another, Suzhou embroidery elements are gradually penetrating into the lives of ordinary people and have received effective inheritance and protection.

Suzhou embroidery is not only a treasure of Jiangnan regional culture but also a cultural bridge connecting the past and the present, tradition and fashion. It is a romantic symbol unique to China.

Our team will continue to walk on this path full of poetry and challenges, constantly exploring the potential value of Suzhou embroidery and helping it sail far in the tide of the new era.