Every time we mention Chuon Ngo village, Chuyen My commune, Hanoi , the folk song seems to be imprinted in the subconscious of many people about the mother-of-pearl inlay craft village with its long-standing tradition. Chuon Ngo inlay products are famous for their delicate features, the mother-of-pearl pieces are always flat, smooth, unbroken, and absolutely tightly attached to the wooden base. Therefore, when mentioning mother-of-pearl inlay, people often immediately think of Chuon Ngo village - "a precious gem in the heart of the Northern Delta".

To create a complete mother-of-pearl inlay work, it takes many stages. Photo: HUE CHI

Sophisticated and elaborate, Chuon Ngo mother-of-pearl inlay products are also quite picky about their players because most of them are high-value products, so they must be people with great passion or economic conditions. In addition, with the characteristics of the products requiring meticulousness, patience and dexterity in each stage, the number of workers in the craft village is decreasing day by day. Up to now, only nearly half of the village's workforce still keeps the profession. Artisan Nguyen Dinh Hai shared: "There are inlay paintings worth up to 400-500 million VND, and cabinets and beds can cost up to more than 1 billion VND. That's why mother-of-pearl inlay is very picky about its players."

Faced with this reality, the fact that young people are proactive in creating and finding new markets for craft villages is a positive sign. Young Minh Chau is such a case. As a son of Chuon Ngo village, Minh Chau has brought with him his love for his hometown products and the desire to spread the beauty of mother-of-pearl inlay products closer to young people. “Since going to university, I have noticed the gradual decline of mother-of-pearl inlay right in my own village, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic, many young people in the village have also switched to other stable jobs with more development opportunities, which has made the human resources to keep the profession increasingly scarce” - Minh Chau said.

Each product in Mun's collection carries a unique message, carefully conceived by Minh Chau and his team, and completely handcrafted by artisans in Chuon Ngo village. Photo: NVCC

From the concerns about the loss of mother-of-pearl inlay and her design foundation, Minh Chau created Mun Artisan - a handmade brand revolving around the art of mother-of-pearl inlay. In order to bring her craft village closer to young people, promote the unique features of Chuon Ngo village under contemporary eyes, Minh Chau has used traditional mother-of-pearl inlay materials on modern designs, through items such as: wooden hairpins, mirrors, necklaces, keychains,... The novelty, both traditional and sophisticated, yet familiar and popular of the products has attracted customers, especially young people. Creativity has made each accessory not just an inanimate object, but also contains an artistic story behind it. The story and the products, through each carving on the mother-of-pearl piece, are like a connecting thread between young people and traditional art, they talk with the ancient features.

Along with promoting products on social media platforms, Mun Artisan also organizes live exhibitions and pop-ups. According to Minh Chau, this is not only an opportunity for mother-of-pearl inlay products from Chuon Ngo village to reach younger audiences, but also an opportunity for her to better understand the customer experience, thereby bringing many projects to bring the thousand-year-old inlay of Chuon Ngo village to more generations in the future.

It is the novelty, traditional, sophisticated, yet familiar and popular features of the products that attract customers, especially young people.

Sharing about the difficulties in the process of bringing mother-of-pearl inlay closer to young people, Minh Chau expressed: “The biggest limitation I encountered in the process of creating mother-of-pearl inlay products is the technical aspect. Because there are many imaginary designs and the reality when making them are very different”. However, being raised in the cradle of mother-of-pearl inlay has made it easier for her to combine traditional mother-of-pearl inlay art with contemporary trends, acting as a bridge to convey mother-of-pearl inlay products between long-time artisans and the younger generation.

The fact that young people are interested in traditional arts is a positive sign that handicraft villages still hold important value in modern life. Photo: NVCC

The craft of mother-of-pearl inlay is still cherished and preserved by the artisans of Chuon Ngo village with their tireless dedication, encompassing the essence and passion in each product, as an effort to preserve a Vietnamese cultural heritage. Nowadays, under the pressure of technology and shifting tastes, it is extremely valuable for young people to proactively approach and bring new approaches to traditional products. The products with the characteristics of Chuon Ngo village, through the journey of "keeping the fire" of young people, have become a message for the spread of cultural values ​​from the craft village to new lands, contributing to enriching the national cultural identity.

HUE CHI

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/van-hoa/doi-song/thoi-hon-duong-dai-kham-net-truyen-thong-864912