An ethnic minority woman in the Tây Nguyên (Central Highlands) region weaves silk. The 5th Việt Nam-International Silk and Brocade Festival will be held in the ancient city of Hội An, the central province of Quảng Nam, from August 7-9. VNA/VNS Photo Hữu Trung

HỘI AN — The 5th Việt Nam-International Silk and Brocade Festival will be held in the central province of Quảng Nam's ancient city of Hội An, from August 7-9, aiming to promote and honour Vietnamese traditional silk and brocade weaving.

Eight countries and dozens of silk and brocade villages from across Việt Nam will present their products in this year’s festival.

In addition, more than 80 artisans will perform their traditional weaving and dyeing methods at the event.
Scientific research has shown that silk weaving dates back to the Hùng Kings Dynasty, and through history, silk weaving has been preserved by handicraft villages including Vạn Phúc in Hà Nội, Nha Xá in the northern province of Hà Nam, Mã Châu in Quảng Nam, Tân Châu in the southern province of An Giang, and Bảo Lộc in the Tây Nguyên (Central Highlands) province of Lâm Đồng, among others.

 

Nông Thị Thược, an artisan from the northern mountain province of Cao Bằng, with her traditional brocade products. — VNA/VNS Photo Chu Hiệu

The art of brocade weaving is a typical cultural feature of ethnic minority groups across the country. Particularly, many ethnic minority communities have their traditional brocade weaving bestowed with national intangible cultural heritage status, including Hrê in Ba Thành Commune in the central province of Quảng Ngãi's Ba Tơ District, Tà Ôi in the central province of Thừa Thiên-Huế's A Lưới District, and Cơ Tu in Quảng Nam Province.

Distinct patterns on unique brocade fabric have been popular among fashion designers for years. Most recently, renowned designer Minh Hạnh introduced a collection of áo dài (Vietnamese traditional dress) made of silk, with brocade patterns frequently used by the Vietnamese ethnic minority groups to Russian fashion-lovers, art critics and researchers. The patterns were hand-woven by female members of ethnic minority groups across the country. — VNS