The names of the four famous embroideries were formed in the mid-19th century. Apart from their own artistic characteristics, another important reason is the commercialization of embroidery. Due to the different market demand and embroidery producing areas, embroidery handicrafts, as a commodity, began to form their own local characteristics. Among them, embroidery products in Jiangsu, Sichuan, Guangdong and Hunan are widely sold and have great influence, so they are called "four famous embroideries".
[ edit this paragraph] Suzhou embroidery of the four famous embroideries
Suzhou embroidery is a general term for embroidery products centering on Suzhou, Jiangsu, including Jiangsu. Suzhou is located in the south of the Yangtze River, and the birthplace of Suzhou embroidery is in Wuxian, Suzhou, which is near Taihu Lake, with a mild climate and rich silk. Therefore, it is known as
the traditional habit that Suzhou embroidery women are good at embroidery. Superior geographical environment, rich brocade and colorful flower lines have created favorable conditions for the development of Suzhou embroidery. In the long historical development process, Suzhou embroidery has formed a local style with beautiful patterns, harmonious colors, bright lines, lively stitches and fine embroidery, and is known as the "Oriental Pearl".
From the perspective of appreciation, the main artistic features of Su embroidery works are as follows: mountains and rivers can be divided into near and far interests; The pavilion has a profound body; Characters can have vivid feelings; Flowers and birds can show their gracefulness and intimacy. The realistic artistic effects of imitation embroidery and portrait embroidery of Suzhou embroidery are world-famous. In terms of embroidery techniques, Suzhou embroidery is mainly based on needle sets, and the embroidery thread is sleeved without revealing the stitch. Three or four different color lines of the same kind or adjacent colors are often used to match, so that the color effect of blooming is freely embroidered. At the same time, it is good to leave a "waterway" when expressing the image, that is, to leave a line empty in the depth change of the image, so that it can be layered and the outline of the pattern is neat. Therefore, when people evaluate Suzhou embroidery, they often sum it up in eight words: "flat, neat, fine, dense, even, smooth, harmonious and bright".
after a long period of accumulation, Suzhou embroidery has developed into a complete art with complete varieties, abundant pictures and various changes, involving decorative paintings (such as oil painting series, Chinese painting series, water town series, flower series, greeting card series, pigeon spectrum series, vase series, etc.). Practical products involve clothing, handkerchiefs, scarves, greeting cards and so on.
[ Edit this paragraph] Guangdong Embroidery of Four Famous Embroideries
Guangdong Embroidery Guangdong Embroidery is the floorboard of handmade silk embroidery with Guangzhou as the production center. According to legend, it was originally founded in the minority nationality-Li nationality. Most of the previous embroidery workers were men from Guangzhou and Chaozhou, which is rare in the world. There are mainly embroidery such as clothing, hanging screen, wallet, screen heart, round fan and fan cover. In art, the composition of Guangdong embroidery is dense and lively, the colors are rich and dazzling, the stitches are simple, the embroidery lines are thick and loose, the stitches are uneven in length, and the stitches overlap slightly. Phoenix, peony, pine cranes, apes, deer, chickens and geese are often the themes. Another kind of famous Cantonese embroidery is embroidered with brocade satin or nail gold, that is, the famous nail gold embroidery, especially the gold velvet embroidery lined with high floating cushion, which is resplendent and magnificent, and is mostly used as costumes, stage furnishings and temple furnishings embroidery, which is suitable for rendering a warm and festive atmosphere.
the characteristics of Guangdong embroidery were formed in the middle and late Ming dynasty. Its main features are as follows: First, it uses a variety of threads, including silk thread and wool thread, and it also uses Kong Yu's twisted floor as thread, or uses ponytail to wrap wool as thread. Second, the color is bright, the contrast is strong, and the gorgeous effect is emphasized. The third is to use gold thread as the outline of embroidery pattern. Fourth, the decorative patterns are full and lively. Common themes with local characteristics are birds paying homage to the phoenix, seafood fish and shrimp, bergamot and melons. Fifth, embroidery workers are mostly male workers. There are many kinds of embroidery, such as quilt cover, pillowcase, bed lintel, shawl, headscarf, table curtain, embroidered clothes, shoes and hats, costumes, etc., as well as mirror screens, hanging curtains and banners.
[ Edit this paragraph] Shu embroidery of four famous embroideries
Shu embroidery
Shu embroidery, also known as "Sichuan embroidery", is the general name of Sichuan embroidery products centered on Chengdu. Shu embroidery has a long history. According to Chang Qu's "Huayang Guozhi" in Jin Dynasty, the embroidery in Shu was very famous at that time, and Shu embroidery and Shu brocade were regarded as famous products in Shu. There are relatively few pure ornamental objects in Shu embroidery, mostly daily necessities, and most of them are made of flowers, birds, insects and fish, folk auspicious language and traditional decorative patterns, which are quite festive. They are embroidered on quilts, pillowcases, clothes, shoes and painted screens. In the middle and late Qing Dynasty, Shu embroidery absorbed the advantages of Gu embroidery and Su embroidery on the basis of local traditional embroidery techniques, and became one of the important commercial embroideries in China. Shu embroidery needle is neat, even and bright, the silk road is clear, there is no ghostwriting, the edge of the pattern is too neat like a knife cut, and the color is bright and beautiful.
Shu embroidery takes soft satin and colored silk as the main raw materials, and its embroidery technique is very unique. There are at least 1 kinds of exquisite needle embroidery techniques, such as colorful brocade embroidery, line embroidery with embroidery and painting, exquisite and delicate Shuang Mianxiu, yarn needle, point needle and covering needle, which are all very unique and exquisite techniques. In today's embroidery, there are both huge screens and small pocket pieces; There are both high-precision appreciation of famous products and ordinary consumer goods. The state attaches great importance to the protection of intangible cultural heritage. On May 2, 26, Shu embroidery was approved by the State Council to be included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list. On June 5, 27, the Ministry of Culture confirmed that Hao Shuping of Chengdu, Sichuan Province was the representative inheritor of Shu embroidery, and was included in the list of 226 representative inheritors of the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage projects.
[ Edit this paragraph] Xiang embroidery of the four famous embroideries
Xiang embroidery is the general name of embroidery products centered on Changsha, Hunan. Xiang embroidery won the best prize and the first prize at the Turin Expo in Italy and the Panama World Expo in 1912 and 1933, respectively, and was praised as a super embroidery abroad. Originally, in order to satisfy a group of upstarts who made a fortune by suppressing the Taiping rebels, the merchants in Changsha opened the "Gu Embroidery Village", and soon overwhelmed Gu Embroidery in the name of Xiang Embroidery. Xiang embroidery is characterized by embroidery with velvet thread (no twisted wool thread). In fact, the velvet thread is treated in solution to prevent pilling. This embroidery is locally called "wool fine embroidery". Xiang embroidery is also mostly based on Chinese painting, with vivid form and bold style. It once had the reputation that "embroidered peanuts smell, embroidered birds can hear, embroidered tigers can run, and embroidered people can express their emotions". The color matching characteristics of Hunan embroidery humanistic paintings are mainly dark gray and black and white, which are as elegant as ink painting; The daily necessities of Xiang embroidery are brightly colored, and the decorative patterns are strong.
Xiang embroidery
Xiang embroidery is mainly made of pure silk, hard satin, soft satin, transparent yarn and various colors of silk and wool. Its characteristics are: rigorous composition, bright colors, and expressive stitches. Through rich color lines and ever-changing stitches, the embroidered figures, animals, landscapes, flowers and birds have special artistic effects. In Hunan embroidery, no matter Ping Xiu, weaving embroidery, net embroidery, knotting embroidery, beating embroidery, velvet-cut embroidery, three-dimensional embroidery, Shuang Mianxiu, disorderly needle embroidery, etc., they all pay attention to depicting the appearance and inner quality of objects, even if they are a scale, a claw and a leaf, they are meticulous. According to the embroidery unearthed from the Chu Tomb in Changsha in 1958, Hunan local embroidery had developed as early as the Spring and Autumn Period more than 2,5 years ago. In 1972, 4 pieces of embroidered clothes were unearthed in Mawangdui Western Han Dynasty tomb in Changsha, indicating that Hunan local embroidery had developed to a higher level in the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,1 years ago. Since then, in the long process of development, it has gradually cultivated a simple and beautiful artistic style. With the development of Hunan embroidery commodity production, through the hard work of embroidery artists and the participation of some outstanding painters in the reform and improvement of Hunan embroidery skills, many fine traditions of Chinese painting have been transplanted to embroidery products, and various traditional Chinese painting, embroidery, poetry, calligraphy and epigraphy have been skillfully integrated, thus forming Hunan embroidery based on Chinese painting, using more than 7 kinds of stitches and more than 1 colors of embroidery lines to give full play to the expressive force of stitches. Delicate description of the characteristics of the appearance of objects, embroidery is vivid, vivid, strong in texture, both in form and spirit, and bold in style. It used to have the reputation of "embroidered peanuts, embroidered birds can hear, embroidered tigers can run, and embroidered people can convey the spirit".