Lesson 2: Finding a direction for Dam Pao weaving

Ms. Ka Ly has switched to weaving with industrial fibers.

• CONTEMPLATION IN THE WEAVING VILLAGE

Mrs. Don Gun Ka Trang, who is often called Mother Nuong by the Dam Pao people, is also a famous weaver. In the garden, she also grows t'ram trees, sows cotton seeds in the fields, and still has a spinning wheel in the house. However, the number of woven fabrics has gradually decreased. She said that in the house, only she is still attached to the loom. Her daughters and granddaughters no longer weave.

Ms. Long Dinh Ka Ly, Thia’s mother’s niece, also said that Dam Pao girls no longer like weaving. Weaving hurts their backs and the income is low, so children no longer like it. “There are still many children who were taught the craft from a young age, knowing how to stretch the frame and weave the threads, but they complain that weaving is tiring and doesn’t pay much, working in a coffee shop or a company is healthier and has a better income,” Ms. Ka Ly sadly commented. Only people like her sister, her mother and their peers still linger with indigo threads.

“Weaving brocade is laborious and very tiring. For me, if I do it quickly, I can finish a piece of fabric in one day, if I do it slowly, it takes two days. The price is low, only from 300,000 to 350,000 VND per piece of fabric, just enough to spend but very difficult to have extra money,” said Ms. Ka Ly. This is also the reason why brocade weaving is gradually losing its appeal to young women. According to Ms. Ka Ly, currently in Dam Pao village, there are only a few households, families with elderly artisans who still maintain the traditional weaving profession of growing cotton, dyeing fabric, and spinning their own yarn. Most of the remaining families still weaving fabric use industrial yarn. “Nowadays, young people who weave fabric buy yarn, but few people are patient enough to grow cotton and spin their own yarn. Buying yarn is faster, less labor-intensive, but the price is also much lower than fabric that is spun, dyed, and woven by hand,” said Ms. Ka Ly. She also commented that hand-woven fabric has very real colors, the ancient indigo color looks very different, and is popular in the market. However, because many companies have opened in Da Don commune and Dinh Van town, young people in the village can easily find jobs, so the brocade weaving profession has lost its appeal.

"Currently, many families no longer have successors," said Mr. Nguyen Minh Thu - Head of Dam Pao village. According to Mr. Thu, Dam Pao only has 3 artisans aged 70 - 80 who still preserve the traditional weaving profession, from growing cotton to spinning and dyeing. Most of the rest, with younger women, have switched to weaving brocade with industrial fibers. Mr. Thu also admitted that weaving is becoming less attractive to Dam Pao women, young people often finish school and go to work as workers in surrounding businesses, which is less difficult, has a stable income, and has good benefits such as health insurance and social insurance.

• NEW WINDS

"Dam Pao village is also in a very difficult period because of the lack of successors. All the children are working, very few people intend to follow in the footsteps of their grandmothers and mothers. Also because the income from brocade weaving is too low, it is no longer attractive to young people. This is also the concern of Dam Pao village in the face of the risk of traditional craft gradually disappearing. Dam Pao village was recognized as a craft village more than 10 years ago, and has invested in an exhibition area. However, we also realize that we have not been proactive in promoting the strengths of traditional craft in the face of market pressure," Mr. Nguyen Minh Thu worried.

Mr. Thu still believes that, despite the ups and downs, Dam Pao still has a bright future for the weaving profession. “A lot of foreign tourists come to Dam Pao. They really like to learn about cotton growing, spinning, dyeing and weaving. They come to the place and learn about each stage. If we can attract this number of tourists to Dam Pao to visit, buy brocade fabric and use services, it will bring a stable source of income for the women. We are developing the idea of bringing artisans to the exhibition area to display and perform weaving to attract tourists to Dam Pao. Only when they can make a living with the profession, will the children continue to stick with brocade,” Mr. Nguyen Minh Thu confided. Another good thing is that Dam Pao brocade is being highly appreciated by fashion designers. In particular, the soft brocade pieces, with the traditional indigo color woven by hand, are chosen by many fashion designers. Designers like K'Jona and Ao Dai Kim Ngan are very fond of using Dam Pao brocade in their fashion creations. These new changes have brought vitality to traditional brocade fabrics.

In addition, the children of Dam Pao, although not directly involved in the weaving profession, are also looking for new directions for brocade. Long Dinh Hong, daughter of Ka Ly, although no longer weaving brocade with her mother, has put Dam Pao brocade online, introducing and promoting the traditional fabric of her people, widely supplying brocade to friends from all over the world. New ways of doing things, new winds are blowing to Dam Pao, bringing hope to the indigo threads of the mountains and forests.

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/kinh-te/202504/nhung-soi-chi-det-sac-mau-dam-pao-bai-2-a386938/