The Crafts Council Nederland organized the second Crafts Campus in Wilhelminaoord (Holland) during the 12th – 17th July 2017 for fashion and design students, professionals, folders and anyone who wants to develop their skills. In this short, intensive course received a lot of knowledge of Chinese traditional techniques and new applications like by the Miao and Dong people: paper making, folding, dyeing, embroidery. Marieke de Hoop, Ien Rappoldt, Xiaoxian Huang and Joan Sallas were the teachers.
Lots of crafts come together in the making of different stiles of the Chinese method of combined folding boxes, in south China made from leaves of the mulberry tree, with the exterior of indigo from Guizhou and Yunnan and the whole decorated with embroidered patterns that are also used on the clothing of the Miao people. The combined folding boxes from north China are folded mostly with the flower box unit and its variations. The first two days the participants started collecting materials in the environment and making with them own paper. The next days the participants learn how to fold a north and south Chinese method of combined boxes, as well as dye and embroider a lot of samples in the ways of the Miao and the Dong Chinese ethnic minorities.
In addition to the program, Marieke de Hoop offered a Orikadabra theater for all the participants, Ien Rappoldt gave a conference on Miao and Dong embroidery and Joan Sallas gave an introduction on european napkin renaissance and baroque folding technics. Five days in a wonderful place with enthusiastic participants and through interesting activities.
During the evenings the teachers analyzed, compared and described ca. 150 original old Chinese samples of combined folding boxes (针线 包, zhēn xiàn bāo) from the collections in the PaDoRe archive in Badalona (Catalonia) and from Ien’s Rapppoldt Archive in Vledder (Holland).