Suzhou embroidery, that is, Suzhou embroidery, originated in Wuxian County, Suzhou, and has spread all over Wuxi, Changzhou, Yangzhou, Suqian, Dongtai and other places in Jiangsu Province. Jiangsu, the birthplace of Suzhou embroidery, has fertile land, mild climate, developed sericulture and rich silk, and has been a splendid place since ancient times. Superior geographical environment, rich brocade and colorful flower lines have created favorable conditions for the development of Suzhou embroidery. According to Liu Xiang's Shuo Yuan in the Western Han Dynasty, as early as the Spring and Autumn Period more than 2,000 years ago, the State of Wu had already used Su embroidery in costumes. During the Three Kingdoms period, Sun Quan, the king of Wu, ordered Zhao Dacheng's sister to embroider maps of various countries by hand. According to "The Secret Collection of Qing Dynasty", Suzhou embroidery is "the embroidery of Song people, with fine needle and thread, one or two threads, and one needle as thin as a hair". Exquisite colors and bright eyes. "It can be seen that in the Song Dynasty, the art of Suzhou embroidery has reached a fairly high level.

■ Classification of Suzhou embroidery:

Local embroidery: It is produced in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, near Shanghai. It cannot be said that Suzhou embroidery can be called Suzhou embroidery as long as it is operated by Suzhou businessmen. Authentic Suzhou embroidery should belong to "local embroidery", or it should be a work embroidered by Suzhou natives. Embroiderers are all local people, and their products are delicate and shiny, with harmonious color transition and moderate parting.

Subei Embroidery: It is produced in Yancheng and Huai 'an (Subei) in Jiangsu, and Suzhou locals call it Subei Embroidery and Jiangbei Embroidery. The price is low, but the workmanship is also poor. The embroidery thread is not split, but it is two velvet or one velvet and half embroidered, not to mention art and graffiti, which is not elegant. The most classic masterpieces are Golden Avenue and Red Maple. Moreover, it is difficult to improve the workmanship and sales price. In recent years, embroidery in northern Jiangsu has spoiled the Suzhou embroidery market, posing as Suzhou embroidery and shoddy it frequently. But objectively speaking, embroidery in northern Jiangsu has also played a positive role in stabilizing the local embroidery price.

Baoying embroidery: produced in Baoying (Suzhong), Yangzhou, Jiangsu. Rich colors and strong three-dimensional sense, but the embroidery thread is not bifurcated. They are all velvet embroidery, that is, one thread is directly embroidered. So when I look at the photos from a distance, I feel that the three-dimensional effect is acceptable, but when I look closely, it is quite heavy and unbearable. Scenery and figure embroidery are its strengths, but delicate work like figure embroidery (face opening) is still done by Suzhou locals with superior skills, and Baoying embroidery is also expensive, which is unacceptable in the domestic market.

■ Production mode of Suzhou embroidery:

There are generally two production methods of Suzhou embroidery: piece-by-piece system and timing system.

Piece-by-piece system is a mode of production in which embroidery materials are handed over to embroidery workers on the basis of pieces, helping them to match embroidery threads and specify quality standards, and finally negotiating the appropriate salary recognized by both parties and agreeing on the completion date, commonly known as "release orders" and "release". Embroiderers can process at home, not limited by location and without special supervision, but even if the actual working hours are exceeded, the labor cost is basically unchanged.

"Timing system" refers to calculating the wages due according to the actual working hours, and embroidery workers complete the embroidery processing according to the quality and quantity of 8-hour working hours under the guidance, supervision and training of professional technicians. Embroiderers are supervised by special personnel and must go to work on time at a fixed place every day. They are not allowed to engage in private work, but their remuneration is a monthly salary.

In addition, Xiang embroidery, Shu embroidery, Yue embroidery and Su embroidery are also called "Four Famous Embroideries" in China. However, the statistical proportion of domestic consumption and foreign trade export of Chinese embroidery market shows that Suzhou embroidery accounts for more than 83%, Hunan embroidery accounts for 12%, and the remaining market share is divided by Shu embroidery, Yue embroidery and Bian embroidery respectively. It can be seen that the dominant position of Suzhou embroidery in the embroidery market at home and abroad is beyond doubt. As a national culture, we welcome a hundred flowers to blossom. Four famous embroideries and ten famous embroideries are all on the list, each of which is the crystallization of the wisdom of Chinese sons and daughters, but we have to face up to the fact that the king status of Su embroidery is strong and unshakable today and even in the next few decades!

Suzhou embroidery originated in Wuxian County, Suzhou, and has spread all over Wuxi, Changzhou, Yangzhou, Suqian, Dongtai and other places in Jiangsu Province. Jiangsu has fertile land, mild climate, developed sericulture and rich silk, and has been a splendid place since ancient times. Superior geographical environment, rich brocade and colorful flower lines have created favorable conditions for the development of Suzhou embroidery. According to Liu Xiang's Shuo Yuan in the Western Han Dynasty, as early as the Spring and Autumn Period more than 2,000 years ago, Wu had already used it for clothing. During the Three Kingdoms period, Sun Quan, the king of Wu, ordered Zhao Dacheng's sister to embroider maps of various countries with her own hands, and embroidered five mountains, rivers, seas, cities, rows and other patterns on the silk, which is said to be "a splendid world". According to "The Secret Collection of Qing Dynasty", "Song people embroidered with fine needle and thread, with one or two threads and one needle as thin as hair. Exquisite colors are dazzling. The mountains and rivers are interesting from a distance, and the characters in the pavilions are vivid, colorful and graceful. The best is better than painting. " It can be seen that the art of Suzhou embroidery in Song Dynasty has reached a quite high level. By the Ming Dynasty, Jiangnan had become the center of silk weaving handicraft industry. In painting art, wu school, represented by Tang Yin and Shen Zhou, promoted the development of painting art. Artists combine painting to reproduce, and the masterpieces embroidered are vivid and exquisite, which is known as "painting with needles" and "outstanding". Since then, art has formed its own artistic style in terms of stitches, color patterns, etc., which is beautiful in the art garden and competes with calligraphy and painting. The Qing Dynasty was the heyday of Suzhou embroidery, which was characterized by various schools and famous artists. A large number of products enjoyed by the royal family are almost entirely from artists. Folk is rich and colorful, widely used in clothing, clothing, quilts, pillow bags, curtains, cushions, uppers, sachets, fan bags and so on. These Suzhou embroidery articles for daily use not only have diverse stitches, exquisite embroidery and elegant color matching, but also have patterns and patterns with festive, longevity and auspicious meanings, which are deeply loved by the masses. There is also a kind of "painting embroidery" which belongs to advanced appreciation and is called "boudoir embroidery". The masterpieces of Wu County and Cao, Wujiang and Shen Guanguan, Wuxi and Xue Wenhua were once famous. Especially in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, in the trend of western learning spreading to the east, Suzhou embroidery also showed signs of innovation. During the Guangxu period, Shen, who was skilled, was quite famous in Suzhou embroidery. She integrated the characteristics of Xiao Shen simulation in western painting into embroidery, and created a new kind of "simulated embroidery". In the 30th year of Guangxu (A.D. 1904), Cixi celebrated her seventieth birthday, and Shen Xiu presented eight works, including the Buddha statue, to celebrate her birthday. Empress Dowager Cixi wrote the words "longevity" and "happiness" for Shen and her husband Yu Jue. From then on, Shen changed his name to Shen Shou. Later, her work "The Portrait of the Italian Queen Elena" was presented to Italy as a national gift, which caused a sensation among the Italian government and people. Nasu's portrait won the first prize in the Panama-Pacific International Exhibition held in the United States in 2005, and the price was as high as 13000 US dollars. When the portrait of Vorbeck, an American woman, was exhibited in the United States, its grand occasion was unprecedented. Shen Shou's "Imitation Embroidery" is famous all over the world, which has opened a brand-new page for Suzhou embroidery.

Under her advocacy, Jiangsu Suzhou, Nantong, Danyang, Wuxi, Changshu and other places held workshops, embroidery engineering courses, embroidery trade unions and so on. She has been to Suzhou, Beijing, Tianjin, Nantong and other places to teach students and cultivate a new generation. At that time, other famous artists were Tang, Li Peikai, Cai Qunxiu and Jin Jingfen ... Their works were successively exhibited at Dulang International Expo (19 1 1) and Panama-Pacific International Expo (19/kloc-). In the early 1930s, Yang Shouyu, director of embroidery engineering in Danyang Zheng Zheng Women's Vocational School, initiated criss-crossing and layered embroidery, which enriched and improved the expressive force of Suzhou embroidery. Since the early 1950s, artists' creation has opened a new and vast world. Suzhou, Nantong, Changzhou, Wuxi, Yangzhou, Dongtai and other places have successively established research institutions or factories so that artists can devote themselves to research and creation with peace of mind. The lost skills have been excavated, summarized, improved and developed, which makes the ancient Suzhou embroidery art glow again.

Suzhou embroidery is the general name of embroidery products centered on Suzhou, Jiangsu. Suzhou embroidery has a history of more than 2000 years. As early as the Three Kingdoms period (AD 220-280), there were records about the production of Suzhou embroidery. Since then, through the continuous development and perfection of past dynasties, in the Ming Dynasty (1368 ~ 1644), Suzhou embroidery has become a popular sideline, forming a situation of "every family raises silkworms and embroiders". Suzhou embroidery in the Qing Dynasty (A.D.1644 ~191) was famous for its "exquisiteness and elegance", and Suzhou at that time was also called the "embroidery market". In the middle and late Qing Dynasty, Suzhou embroidery developed further in embroidery technology, and a beautiful "Shuang Mianxiu" appeared. In Suzhou alone, there are as many as 65 merchants specializing in embroidery. During the Republic of China (A.D. 19 12 ~ 1949), the embroidery industry in Jiangsu declined for a time due to years of war. After the founding of New China, Suzhou embroidery was further restored and developed. After 1950, the State established Suzhou Embroidery Institute to offer embroidery training courses. Suzhou embroidery has developed from 18 stitches to more than 40 stitches today.

Suzhou embroidery has a unique style, beautiful patterns, ingenious ideas, meticulous embroidery, lively stitches, elegant colors and strong local characteristics. Embroidery has the characteristics of "flat, even, thin, dense, harmonious, smooth and even". "Flat" means that the embroidery surface is flat; "Qi" means that the edge of the pattern is neat; "Fine" means that the needle is fine and the embroidery thread is fine; "Dense" means that the lines are arranged closely and no stitches are exposed; "Harmony" means the right color; "Light" refers to dazzling and bright colors; "Shun" means that silk is round and turned from itself; "Uniform" means fine and uniform lines and uniform density. In terms of types, Suzhou embroidery works can be mainly divided into three categories: zero scissors, costumes and hanging screens, which are both decorative and practical. Among them, Shuang Mianxiu's works are the most exquisite.