Beijing Silk Flower
Beijing silk flowers, also known as "Jinghua", are a traditional art of colorful tying in Beijing. They originated in the Chongwenmenwai Flower Market area. During the Kangxi and Qianlong reigns of the Qing Dynasty, there were many flower shops, flower bureaus, and flower workshops outside Chongwenmen. Most families in the surrounding area made silk flowers, and gradually formed a large-scale service of making and selling flowers. This area has thus become a distribution center for "Jinghua" and is called "Flower Market", a name that is still used today. Beijing silk flowers are made of silk, damask, electric spinning, foreign spinning, crepe satin, etc. The production process requires sizing, chiseling, dyeing, holding petals, gluing, accumulating, packaging, and other processes. The finished products are exquisitely crafted, lifelike in shape, and have unique ornamental value. In the past, Beijing had famous silk flower families such as "Huaerjin" and "Huaergao". Among them, "Huaerjin" is the general name of four generations of Jin Gui, Jin Wenguang, Jin Baoshun, and Jin Yulin. According to “A Brief Account of Cultural Relics in the Old Capital”, “During the reign of Emperor Guangxu, there was a man named Jin who made exquisite paper flower pots and vases. People called him ‘Hua’er Jin’, but to this day, no one better than Jin has made this kind of art.” Currently, affected by current circumstances, the silk flower industry is extremely depressed. The Beijing Silk Flower Factory has declared bankruptcy, and there are only a handful of artists who have mastered the skills of making silk flowers. The once-famous Beijing silk flower art is facing the risk of being lost and urgently needs to be rescued.