Laos ambassad

Text från powerpoint tillhandahållen från Laos ambassad:
“Embroidery work is a skillful art of craftsmanship. The art of embroidery adds uniqueness and beauty to traditional Lao costumes, they depict the belief, culture, life and traditions of the people whose lives are closely to nature. In the past, embroidered costumes were worn exclusively by the elites and the Lao royal government officials. Today, they are widely used by people of almost all walks of life on very special occasions.

The materials used for such beautiful embroidered products are of very high qualities and prices. They include golden or silver threads, gold or silver silk, tiny sparkling gold or silver balls, and high-quality silk fabric, traditionally imported from China and other renounced origins such as France and England. Today’s silk fabrics are more available and affordable in Lao PDR, where sericulture (silk farming) is organized in production units where the reeling, colouring and spinning are all done by hand, and often by women. Embroidery is regarded as a very esteemed contemporary form of arts created with skills and creativity of Laotians. They are pieces of ideal beauty capturing the uniqueness of Laotian culture.
The patterns of embroidered pieces are inspired by both the fantasy or local folktales, as well as the existing flora and fauna as an attempt to portray the richness of Lao PDR’s biological diversity. Some patterns are adapted from the influence of Chinese culture carrying the meaning of blessings and best wishes to meet the taste of local customers who customize and design new patterns every day.

Nowadays, Lao embroidered products are widely incorporated in wedding costumes, especially by the brides. They are also widely used during formal receptions and as an official national attire. The costumes being donated today have been acquired from Meuang Xua Embroidery. MeuangXua Embroidery is a social entrepreneurial initiative founded in 2012 by Ms. Manoly Sisavanh, who is known as a wilderness and textile enthusiast. MeuangXua Embroidery is currently working with 25 people from seven different ethnic groups (Lao, Yuan, Tai Lue, Tai Dam, Lao Kor, Khmu and Hmong) in five provinces (Luang Prabang, Luang Namtha, Oudomxay, Phongsaly and Vientiane Capital) to make fabrics and ready-to-wear outfits in both traditional and modern designs. The group uses women-made embroidery, handwoven fabrics, natural and chemical colour dye.
Team members are mainly women who are embroiderers, weavers, tailors, designers and traders. The group has one male working as a motif/pattern drawer and some men help their wives in cutting metal threads into smaller pieces and segregating them by colour. Their main customers are also female who share the love for arts, textile, ethnic diversity, and human stories. MeuangXua applies the “marketing with meaning” approach whereby customers can get access to key information such as who make their clothes and how this business helps sustain lives of producers and their dependents. It all started at Pakvead village, Xieng Ngeun District in Luang Prabang Province, Lao PDR. People in this village live along Nam Khan River, which is a tributary of the Mighty Mekong. If not forests, the villagers from this area often go to Nam Khan River to fish, harvest river weeds, or grow vegetable along the river bank. MeuangXua invests in skills for the local talented artisans and provide them with steady cash incomes from making embroidery. These women feel empowered as they can spend the money they earn in their children’s education, buying food, raising domestic animals, or even buy new clothes and cosmetics.

Our mission is to empower local communities to fullest their potential while preserving and promoting their natural and cultural resources.”

Gåva av Laos regering, via deras ambassadör i Sverige, mr Bounpheng Saykanya. Nationen Laos har uttryckt en önskan att få dela med sig av sin kultur med Sverige och att ge svenskar, samt egen utflyttad befolkning, möjligheten att ta del av Laos kultur utanför landet.

Myndigheten har en fin samling textilier från Sydostasien. Med detta förvärv bygger vi på den samlingen. Våra samlingar från Laos är få, så med detta förvärv bygger vi kunskap om den laotiska kulturen. Textilindustrin i Laos är av hög kvalitet och de är särskilt kända för sina broderier. Dessa dräkter är särskilt utvalda, och tillverkade, med detta i åtanke. Dräkterna är högtidsdräkter av den typ som bärs vid speciella tillfällen.

Broderierna berättar sina egna historier. Ett mönster som upprepar sig kan betyda lycka och välgång. Ett annat är naga-mönster. Naga är en mytologisk orm-liknande varelse som sägs bo längs med Mekong-floden. Laotier menar att nagan beskyddar landet Laos.