Suzhou, or Su, embroidery is named for the garden city that has long been the center of the country’s silk trade. With its dense, fine needlework and depictions of idealized landscapes, this craft has been a source of local identity and pride—even as Suzhou developed into one of the country’s largest centers of high-tech manufacturing.
Working with dyed silk thread split into extremely fine strands, embroiderers create images so finely detailed that they resemble paintings. Used as decorative wall hangings, Suzhou embroidery is sustained in part through formal training programs and commercial industry.
FESTIVAL PARTICIPANTS
Cai Meiying 蔡梅英 learned embroidery at a young age from women in her family and trained formally at the Suzhou Embroidery Research Center under master Wang Zhuzhi, and has been practicing this craft for more than thirty years. Her embroidery incorporates coloring from modern art, as well as Chinese classic embroidery techniques. She uses a special technique to dye the threads, which are made of silk. She has been featured in many national and local television programs, and plays an active role in training new generations of Suzhou embroiderers in Jiangsu Province.
