Teochew Festival 2014 - Teochew Arts and Crafts

Brought some friends to Teochew Festival 2014. Teochew is the second largest spoken Chinese language used in Singapore, so these friends who are Hokkiens, Hainanese and Cantonese want to know more about the Teochew culture and heritage. :)

My friends first toured a museum on the history of Teochews beginning from the Qin Dynasty. Many visitors were seen taking pictures in front of this impressive reproduction of the hull of a traditional Teochew junk which many of our ancestors hopped onboard to sail to a better life.

Teochew embroidery (潮绣) is one of the four famous embroideries in China. My girlfriends and I were so fascinated with this beautiful art, lots of oohs and aahs at the hand-embroidered flowers and realistic-looking dragons and phoenixes. The 3D embroideries were truly impressive.

We watched a demonstration by a craftsman who was using gold and silver inlay on her piece, it is different from other embroidery.

Traditional Teochew lantern making...., watch craftsman Chen Zhoumao's fingers fly as he works. Wow.

After making a lattice bamboo frame, strips of translucent paper are then stuck on the bamboo frame, using a special glue. Making a lantern is a tedious chore.

Teochew woodcarving (潮州木雕) originates in the Tang Dynasty and is very popular in Chaoshan. A great deal of wood carving are used by Teochew people in their buildings.

We watched a craftsman using quite a number of tools to carve these intricate and beautiful woodcarvings. Prices of these master pieces are high. :)

Learn more at Teochew Festival 2014 (25 Sep - 5 Oct 2014)
11 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza
Admission fee: S$5 per person.