Preserving the essence of Minh Lãng's traditional embroidery craft.

Chú thích ảnh

At nearly 70 years old, artist Nguyen Cao Binh is known as the "painter of thread" because his works are vivid, sharp, harmonious, and reach the pinnacle of both artistry and technique. Photo: The Duyet/TTXVN

The ups and downs of a 200-year-old traditional craft village.

At nearly 70 years old, artisan Nguyen Cao Binh (Bui Xa village, Thu Tri commune) is respectfully called "The Thread Painter" by his peers because his works are not just ordinary embroidered paintings but have reached a level of mastery, sharpness, and harmony in both aesthetics and technique. He was also the first person in the traditional Minh Lang embroidery village to be awarded the title of "Embroidery Artisan" in 2008.

Mr. Binh shared that, according to historical documents, in 1825 the entire Thai Binh region was flooded, resulting in crop failure, famine, and widespread disease. Three elders, Nguyen Nhu Khang, Nguyen Nghia, and Nguyen Ca, left their village to seek a living elsewhere, and coincidentally learned embroidery. They then passed this skill on to their descendants and the people of Goi and Bui villages (now Phu Loi and Bui Xa hamlets), thus giving birth to the embroidery craft in Minh Lang.

During the feudal period, Minh Lang's embroidery products mainly consisted of hats, robes, and garments for court officials. Although affected by war, the traditional craft was maintained, though the number of embroidery frames was limited. The 1970s and 1980s were the village's heyday, when it became a giant embroidery workshop, attracting thousands of households and providing high incomes for local people, with many products exported to the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries. However, in the 1990s, the collapse of the Soviet and Eastern European markets significantly impacted Minh Lang's embroidery craft, plunging the village into hardship.

Chú thích ảnh — Artisan Nguyen Cao Binh (Thu Tri commune, Hung Yen province), despite his advanced age, quietly and carefully preserves the essence of the craft passed down from his ancestors, meticulously crafting each stitch. Photo: The Duyet/TTXVN

According to artisan Nguyen Cao Binh, the most outstanding feature that defines Minh Lang embroidery is its sophisticated "color-filling" technique, which allows for smooth color transitions like a painting, creating depth and a distinctive smoothness. The stitches are small and even, and the composition of the paintings is carefully crafted according to traditional art forms, ensuring harmonious colors and proportions.

The artisans of Minh Lang can embroider many genres, from landscapes and still lifes to religious paintings. Most notably, the most difficult genre of embroidery – portrait embroidery – has been mastered by skilled artisans like Nguyen Cao Binh. For him, portrait embroidery is very difficult, time-consuming, and requires the most accurate resemblance to the subject, capturing their essence through their eyes, smile, and every facial feature. However, this is how he breathes life into his passion and contributes to affirming the value of the Minh Lang craft village today.

Among the thousands of products he has created, embroidered portraits of President Ho Chi Minh have always been his favorite subject. Besides the portrait of Uncle Ho he embroidered decades ago, which is proudly displayed in his home, he is currently embroidering a picture of President Ho Chi Minh speaking with officials and people at Phuong Cap Temple, bearing the unique imprint of his hometown – Hiep Hoa commune, formerly Vu Thu district, now Thu Tri commune, Hung Yen province – along with two pictures of Uncle Ho's paternal and maternal hometowns.

The transmission of skills needs to be prioritized.

Like many other traditional craft villages, the Minh Lang embroidery village faces the risk of decline as it competes with industrially produced embroidery and the consumer trends of modern society, while the workforce, especially young people, are not choosing to stay in the craft.

Ms. Hoang Thi Phuong (Bui Xa village, Thu Tri commune) shared that her family has a three-generation tradition of embroidery. Learning basic embroidery takes about 3-4 months, but achieving exquisite detail requires a lot of experience, talent, and an artistic eye. Now over 60 years old, Ms. Phuong still deeply cares about how to preserve the craft passed down from her ancestors. In reality, the maximum daily wage for an embroiderer is only about 200,000 VND, making it difficult to attract young workers.

This is also the concern of artisan Nguyen Cao Binh. For many years, he has not only preserved the craft for himself but also passed on the essence, techniques, and pride of a once-renowned craft village to anyone who wants to be involved in Minh Lang embroidery. For him, teaching each embroidery stitch to the younger generation is a way of sowing new "seeds of the craft," even if it's just a few small sparks in a village where traditional embroidery frames are gradually disappearing.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Luan, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Thu Tri commune, said that the commune was established based on the reorganization of three communes: Hiep Hoa, Minh Lang, and Song Lang; among which the Minh Lang embroidery village is a typical traditional craft of the locality. Currently, there are 3 enterprises and many production facilities and embroidery cooperatives operating in the area, combining both handcrafted and industrial embroidery. To preserve the craft village, in the coming time, the commune will organize training to improve the skills of embroiderers; collaborate with artisans and skilled craftsmen to open embroidery classes for the younger generation, and at the same time strengthen brand promotion, build experiential tourism tours, and visit the craft village… thereby contributing to preserving the traditional embroidery craft of the locality.

In the modern era, the persistent efforts of artisans and local authorities have contributed to preserving the quintessential values of this 200-year-old craft village. Each traditional embroidery product is not only a work of art that provides livelihoods for local people, but also holds value in connecting the past with the present, extending the local people's pride in a traditional craft deeply rooted in Vietnamese national culture.