Kashgar

“No-one wants to learn, even if you paid them money!” This sixth generation Uyghur potter’s story sounds so familiar. His children have no interest in learning the family secret formula, and he laughs ironically as he gives his response to the question of whether he has apprentices.

He continues “People do not buy these things to use in their homes anymore, tourists buy them as souvenirs.” It seems that while tourism is able to keep this craft alive for the time being, the next generations are not so keen to become souvenir makers.

Visiting the market later on, I see what people do buy to use in their homes: Mass-manufactured, perfectly finished, minimally decorated china without any crude charm or obvious decoration. Perhaps it is a sign of development and changing tastes to suit the modern world. Cheap for everyone to buy, visually simple as not to be obtrusive in brightly lit white walled houses. Is it modern living that has forgotten to include space for the products of craft, or is it the craft that needs to develop to fit into the modern home? Probably both.

Tuohe

Oronchun Aunty makes every item by hand using traditional birch bark skin craft methods. If you wanted to buy one bowl it would cost you the same as if you wanted to buy ten, or even if you wanted to buy a hundred. To her, the value of each and every bowl is identical. They are made of the same material and each have the same function. In the modern world, where terms such as “limited edition” and “mass-production” can determine an object’s value, are we overcomplicating design? Are we so spoilt for choice of what to buy that we have lost the ability to appreciate the pure and simple value of function?

Harbin – Alihe

As I travel north, I find myself increasingly drawn to discover the cultures of the ethnic minority groups that live within the borders of what is geographically China. Observing from the outside, China appears to be one vast country. Observing from the inside, it appears to be one central and dominant country of Han people, surrounded by smaller countries of ethnic minority people. However, the borders of these ethnic minority countries are fragile and disappearing as Han and capitalist culture infiltrates.

This week I met 2 inspirational people. Both with a sad acceptance that much of their own history and culture has already been lost, but are themselves the flames of hope that what remains might survive.

In a year Wu Yisheng qualifies as a agricultural veterinarian, he has studied hard and it would be a financially secure job. Instead however, he plans to open a small craft shop selling fish skin products. He was taught by his mother to make Hezhe fish skin clothing, but understands the limited demand such a product has in the modern world, thus his desire to expand to other products to keep the craft alive.

Wunan and her husband record and promote what still exists of Oronchen culture. On sale in her shop are birch bark containers that her aunt has made using traditional methods, she says that drastic action is required to progress and therefore save the craft. In the past, natural development was possible, but after so much outside disturbances to their culture this is no longer the case.