Saturday, November 04, 2:30 pm–4:30 pm
Studio Suite
This live event will not be recorded.
Chair: Lijun Zhang (George Mason University)
2:30 pm
Basket Crafting Practice and Social Process in Contemporary China
Lijun Zhang (George Mason University)
3:00 pm
Adaptation, Engagement and Innovation: The Practice of Mongolian Female Headdress Crafts in Northern China
Lili Zhu (George Mason University)
3:30 pm
Handcrafts & Field: Changes of Alashan Carpet Weaving Tradition in China
Tao Pang (George Mason University)
4:00 pm
optional discussion time
This session examines the continuity and change of crafting practices in China through the cases of basketry in Southern China, Alashan carpet weaving in Inner Mongolia, and the making of traditional women headdress in Inner Mongolia. The presenters explore how the changing environment and social processes impact crafting practices and how craftspeople and their communities navigate the changes, opportunities, and challenges brought by these processes of social changes. Drawing from ethnographic research as well as review of historical documents and other scholarly works, we offer our observation and thoughts on the transmission, sustaining, and change of tradition crafts and hope to shed some insights into the sustainability and vitality of traditional culture.