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The production of Blue Printed Calico originated in the Tang and Song dynasties. It became popular in southern China in the Ming and Qing dynasties and has remained today in the Tujia area in Hunan Province and Nantong in Jiangsu Province.
The carved patterns of printed designs are made with a strong, multilayered paper, and are hand carved, just like paper cutting. The composition is intricate and lively, and fully embodies local characteristics. Because carved patterns need to be used repeatedly, tung oil is brushed on to improve their resilience.
To imprint the patterns onto the cloth, the dyer puts the carved pattern frames onto the cloth and then plasters a soybean and lime mixture onto the cloth into the hollowed sections of the carved patterns. This forms white patterns on the cloth that the pigment is unable to penetrate. The blue dye pigment comes from a local blue grass. The cloth is dried and then submerged into the indigo solution. After wind drying the dried paste is scraped off and a bright blue and white calico pattern emerges.
Unlike batik and bandhou, printing is a single uninterrupted operation, so a whole bolt of cloth can be dyed at one time and then later freely cut into pieces for costumes. The blue calico is China’s first example of multiple-printing technology.
The patterns are composed of animal and plant motifs, but are much bolder, exaggerated, free and fickle in composition as compared to bandhnu. Fish and swirls are common patterns, a symbol of abundance in a year. Tigers symbolize strength and power while little birds and peacocks symbolize a luxurious livelihood.
Due to the fact that carved printing can be mass-produced and profitable, blue printed calico dye works are spread all over China, especially in the Nantong area where a professional dyeing industry zone was developed. The blue printed calico fabrics are used for clothing, bedcovers, wall ornaments, tablecloths, scarves, door curtains, baggage towels, toys and decorations, and it is closely linked to people’s lives. It has also promoted the development of China’s dyeing and printing industry.
These ancient Chinese dyeing techniques have survived many many years. Although they have been inherited only in some remote minority areas, the development of the Chinese tourist industry, coupled with the changes in people’s aesthetic values, has ensured that these ancient local crafts are glowing with a new vitality.
The production technique has been improved as the composition has become much more and more vivid.
There is a breakthrough even in the terms of the fabric itself as silk material has been introduced.
Product categories have expanded to clothing household items and toys. The former old dye works have attracted many tourists. Now a special blue printed calico museum has been established in Nantong. As the consciousness for the protection of —— cultural heritage is promoted, people are more aware of its value and are beginning to cherish, study and inherit these ancient crafts as part of traditional Chinese culture, savoring the mystery and charm of the Chinese national art as well as the Chinese history and culture.
For years, these three blue printing technologies in China have been deeply rooted in the common life of Chinese people, offering a vibrant taste of art in ordinary life. Today, with the increasing development of textile printing and dyeing technologies, mechanization has gradually replaced the traditional craftsmanship; its practical value has diminished, but its artistic value lingers on, continuing to grow and take on new looks. Its simple but romantic and artistic quality has also aroused people’s attention. Many such old practical utensils have now been transformed into works of art, enabling to establish its own position in the history of art and culture.
