The 'soul keepers' of traditional lanterns

In recent years, with the changes in life, the number of households that still "remain" in the traditional craft of making lanterns from cellophane can be counted on the fingers.

In the past, when the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching, traditional lantern makers were busy supplying goods to serve the market demand with colorful lanterns, meeting the diverse entertainment needs of children. In recent years, with the changes in life, the households that still “remain” in the traditional lantern making profession from cellophane paper can be counted on the fingers. Behind that is the story of love, perseverance, and dedication of those who have devoted their lives to preserving the traditional profession that is gradually fading away with time.

Traditional lantern decoration process. Photo: Luong Kha/VNA

For a long time, lanterns have been an indispensable part of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Every year, as the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, the house on Vo Thi Sau Street (Ward 3, Bac Lieu City) becomes more bustling and busy; people come and go busier to supply goods to the market. Entering the house, before our eyes are traditional lanterns with a variety of colors and shapes, from star lanterns, butterflies, rabbits, to lanterns shaped like airplanes, ships, etc. The owner of the house is Ms. Nguyen Le Thu, 63 years old this year but has been in the profession for more than 50 years. "Although this profession no longer brings a stable income like before, the family is still determined to preserve the tradition left by their ancestors," Ms. Thu confided. Mrs. Nguyen Le Thu recalls: “About ten years ago, the whole village had more than 10 households doing this job. At that time, everyone stayed up until 2-3 am to work together, the atmosphere was like a market. People came and went to get goods, bustling and joyful. My family also made over a thousand lanterns each season, members had to work at full capacity and hire more workers to meet the number of orders”. To produce quality products with diverse designs, from around March, Mrs. Thu’s family had to go all the way to Soc Trang to buy materials. The bamboo bought had to be dried in the sun to avoid termites. By early April, the whole family started making frames by cutting the zinc of bamboo poles to create shapes. This is one of the steps that requires creativity, because it creates the unique features of each lantern.

Ms. Nguyen Le Thu (Ward 3, Bac Lieu City) is decorating patterns for lanterns. Photo: Luong Kha/VNA

After that, the next steps such as gluing cellophane, drawing patterns, etc. will be carried out meticulously. It can be said that making traditional lanterns is not difficult but time-consuming. From a rough, rigid frame, the craftsman must be very skillful to be able to produce products with harmonious shapes and colors. During the process, it is normal to get scratches on the hands due to shaving bamboo and wrapping the joints with lead wire. However, the difficulties and hardships still do not reduce the diligence and passion of those determined to preserve the traditional lantern making profession of Bac Lieu. After the appearance of electronic lights with diverse, eye-catching designs, sounds and lights that attract the attention of children, cellophane lanterns gradually lost their previous unique position. Many craftsmen also lost their interest in bamboo and paintbrushes and began to switch to other jobs, which are less time-consuming and have higher incomes. Under the influence of the hustle and bustle of life, in recent years, each Mid-Autumn Festival, Mrs. Thu only makes a few hundred lanterns and the main customers are agencies, units, schools that buy them to organize programs or cafes and restaurants that buy them to decorate. However, the family still quietly preserves the flame of the profession and it is rekindled every Mid-Autumn Festival. Ms. Phan Duong Xuan Nguyet (in Ward 7, Bac Lieu City) - the third generation successor to the traditional lantern making profession of her family, is determined to preserve the profession left by her ancestors. Her "life partner", Mr. Pham Lam Hoai Duy, although has his own job, every time he has free time, he rolls up his sleeves to do it and knows all the steps without realizing it. Now Mr. Duy also follows his wife's family's profession. Ms. Nguyet confided: “Before the advent of electronic lights, we were very interested in selling lanterns. Now, the consumption has decreased significantly, and making a living is more difficult. Although the lantern making profession only lasts a few months and the income is not high, it brings indescribable joy. Sitting and bending each bamboo stick, applying glue, wrapping zinc, and then looking at your finished product shimmering in candlelight, all your fatigue disappears. I don’t know when this profession has become so ingrained in me, so I never want to give up when customers still choose traditional lanterns among many other modern toys.”

Currently, the price of lanterns depends on the difficulty of each model, ranging from 20-35 thousand VND. For sophisticated and beautiful lanterns, the price can be up to nearly a million, depending on the size and difficulty that the customer orders, such as: the 3-leaf conical hat theater lantern model, the zither or the dragon... It can be said that compared to electronic lanterns, traditional lanterns are not cheap. However, craftsmen can maintain their profession thanks to the support from units, schools, especially parents and those who love traditional lanterns.

Traditional lanterns serve the Mid-Autumn Festival market. Photo: Luong Kha/VNA

“In addition to the love for the job, the craftsman must create new designs and drawings to meet customer tastes. With strange designs, I have to explore everything from the shape to the implementation. Of these, the most complicated steps are assembling the frame and drawing because they have to be balanced, and the drawing requires harmonious and soulful colors. There are lanterns that are too big and complicated, it takes me 2-3 days to complete,” added Mr. Pham Lam Hoai Duy. Currently, every Mid-Autumn Festival, Mr. Pham Lam Hoai Duy and his wife only make a few hundred to sell, but with their love for the job and the desire to “keep the fire burning” for their childhood lanterns, they still try to stick with it. In particular, Ms. Nguyet and Mr. Duy are also willing to teach for free to anyone who wants to learn so that young people can inherit traditional cultural values. Although electronic lanterns now have many modern and innovative features, to me they do not bring much emotion. On the contrary, every time I look at traditional lanterns, my heart is filled with an indescribable excitement. That is why I want to preserve the craft so that future generations will know about the glass paper lanterns that our grandparents experienced in reality, not just through stories, Ms. Nguyet shared. Although life is becoming more and more modern, there are more and more choices for Mid-Autumn Festival toys such as electronic lanterns, folded paper lanterns, glass paper lanterns still quietly shine in their own way, still present in every street. Therefore, families who make traditional lanterns always keep the "soul, the fire" of the craft shining forever. For them, it is the preservation of the unique cultural features of the Vietnamese people in the face of the hustle and bustle of modern life and they want to contribute to preserving the traditional features of their ancestors so that the joy of children on the full moon festival night is more complete.

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