Shenyang hosts Manchu embroidery forum

An industrialization forum regarding Manchu embroidery was held at Shenyang Imperial Palace in Shenyang, capital of Northeast China’s Liaoning province, on May 28.

It was a part of the second Shenyang Creative Design Week, which opened on May 27 and will last until June 3.

The forum aimed to promote traditional culture to more people and help Manchu embroidery to enter the global market, with experts and scholars holding discussions on industrialization, internationalization, development and market outlook for the traditional embroidery, as well as its value for Shenyang’s economic development.

Manchu embroidery became a symbol of royal culture and status after Huang Taiji (1592-1643) proclaimed himself emperor in 1636, in Shenyang.

During the forum, a show involving women wearing the qipao (a traditional body-hugging, one-piece dress) with Manchu embroidery was also staged for visitors. The designs for the clothing were the work of Yang Xiaotong.

Yang is a fourth generation inheritor of Manchu embroidery, and began her study of the art when she was only 4 years old.

Yang has made great efforts to pass on and promote the traditional skill, such as opening a studio to train people, and making various products with Manchu embroidery.

A qipao show is staged during the forum in Shenyang, on May 28. [Photo/Shenyang Daily]

A model shows off her qipao with Manchu embroidery in Shenyang, May 28. [Photo/Shenyang Daily]

A woman models a qipao with Manchu embroidery, Shenyang, May 28 [Photo/Shenyang Daily]