The once "cooling artifact" cannot be sold Where is the way out for Huang Gulin's hand woven grass mat?

Future prospects

Tell the New Era Story of Intangible Cultural Heritage Well

Ningbo intangible cultural heritage expert Zhou Jingshu believes that if we can adapt to the changes of the times, meet the new needs of public life, innovate and inherit the weaving skills of grass mats, the prospects of Huanggulin grass mats will be bright.

"Huang Gulin's hand woven grass mats were once an essential daily necessities for every household, but now they have become 'unpopular' products with the changing demands of the times, indicating that the innovation of hand woven grass mats is not enough, and intangible cultural heritage also needs to keep up with the times."

Zhou Jingshu suggests that the first thing to do is to tell the story of Huang Gulin's grass mat with heart. For example, short videos, stage performances, and film and television works can be used to tell the stories of Huang Gulin's grass mat, such as "The Grass Mat Resists the Jin Army" and "The Prime Minister's Gift". Secondly, we should fully leverage our own advantages, adapt to changes in product supply and demand, combine with the needs of the public, strengthen the creative planning of intangible cultural heritage, continuously improve the level of craftsmanship, expand product categories, and strive to produce high-quality cultural and creative products that are suitable for the market. As a resource with regional characteristics, the government's assistance role in Huanggulin handmade grass mats is indispensable. It is necessary to strengthen policies and financial support for inheriting talents, promote deep integration and development with local agriculture, tourism and other industries, and vigorously expand the international market.

Zhuang Danhua, professor of Zhejiang Vocational and Technical College of Industry and Commerce and doctor of intangible cultural heritage, said that intangible cultural heritage is alive. As a traditional intangible cultural heritage project, Huanggulin straw mat weaving technology has always taken the market. Therefore, in addition to constantly exploring and improving skills, it also needs to keep up with the times, expand the variety of materials, and enrich the types of patterns. But these are difficult for elderly inheritors to achieve. It is best to have young designers collaborate with inheritors who master exquisite skills to jointly develop straw woven products that meet current needs and aesthetics, and have regional characteristics.

At the same time, the inheritance of intangible cultural heritage needs to sow seeds in the hearts of current and future consumers. No matter where they will be in the future, intangible cultural heritage is a touch of nostalgia in their hearts. So, it is very necessary to carry out various intangible cultural heritage experience and skill inheritance and dissemination activities now, especially for children and young people. "Gulin Town and Zhongyi Village have taken a step forward, and we believe that various traditional craft projects, including Huanggulin grass mat weaving, have broader development prospects." said Zhuang Danhua.