When the boldness of northern textile art meets the delicacy of southern Song brocade, a collaboration of intangible cultural heritages spanning thousands of miles unfolds overseas.

At a cultural exchange event held in Melbourne, Australia, Zhao Sitian, a representative inheritor of Liaoning He’s textile art, joined forces with a master of Song brocade, a national intangible cultural heritage. Together, they perfectly fused the ruggedness of northern textile with the exquisiteness of southern Song brocade, creating a groundbreaking masterpiece in brocade art.

He’s traditional textile art craftsmanship is a unique handcrafted art that combines various delicate techniques and expressions such as paper-cutting, embroidery, and patchwork. As the fifth-generation representative inheritor of He’s textile art, Zhao Sitian designs elaborate and innovative artworks. This time, she sets her sights on the world-renowned Song brocade, aiming to create works with an international flair by fusing northern and southern craftsmanship.

Song brocade, one of China’s four famous brocades, is famous for its exquisite patterns and superb craftsmanship. Combining Song brocade with textile art not only poses a greater challenge in technique but also requires a novel design concept. After numerous attempts, Zhao Sitian and the master of Song brocade finally found the perfect fusion point and created a series of unique handcrafted brocade artworks represented by the “Song Brocade Horse”.

The chubby foals and little tigers are wrapped in shimmering cloud-patterned brocade, and their upturned tails are adorned with northern embroidery. These exquisite and adorable toys become beloved “Eastern figurines” under the collision of northern and southern craftsmanship. These works embody both the boldness and roughness of northern textile art and the delicacy and refinement of southern Song brocade, showcasing a distinctive artistic charm. They are not only exquisite artworks but also products of cultural fusion, pioneering a new path for the inheritance and dissemination of intangible cultural heritages.