Culture Tourism

Embroidery scheme benefits Qiang women in Sichuan quake zone

By Huang Zhiling and Zhang Ao (China Daily Sichuan Bureau)
Updated: 2010-06-27 16:27

Visitors to the Narrow Alley in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, were given a pleasant surprise on Friday evening when they happened to see a fashion show there.

Qiang embroiderers join models in the fashion show. [Photo/Huang Zhiling]

Unlike any other show, the one held in a shop whose number is 28 in the alley featured Qiang embroidery in Sichuan exclusively.

They were also impressed with Qiang women weaving embroidery in the shop displaying the nationality's colorful embroidery.

"All the works of Qiang embroidery on display in the shop have been done by Qiang people in the quake zone in Sichuan," said Yin Jianhua, chiarman of the Chengdu Culture and Tourism Development Group, in an interview with www.chinadaily.com.cn.

The magnitude-8.0 Wenchuan earthquake on May 12, 2008 battered habitats of the 320,000 Qiang people in Sichuan, bringing its time-honored culture to the brink of extinction.

To preserve the Qiang culture, Yin's group which is in charge of tourism development in Chengdu co-operated with the Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan to lauch the so-called"Qiang Embroidery Scheme" after the quake which killed nearly 90,000.

The scheme has trained more than 5,000 embroiderers in Aba, Dujiangyan and Qionglai in Sichuan. It has provided 800,000 pieces of silk fabrics for Qiang women weaverers so that they can do embroidery on them and make money without leaving their mountainous home villages.

Some of their works have been sold in the shop under the administration of Yin's group.