Ancient Art Forms

We took a 3 hour train from Vientiane Laos to Luang Prabang, then a 6 hour drive to Nong Khiaw (should have been 3, but the potholes slowed us way down), then an hour boat ride to a tiny village in Laos.  There we found a loom in front of a home where the woman was happy to pull out many fabrics that she had made one thread at a time.  If you've never seen this artwork, it's amazing to watch!  


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We were thrilled to be able to see an ancient artwork of hand drawn Hmong batik. As explained on their website:  Moon Love Batik has the last master Hmong Batik artist, Zu Xiong, as well as our two apprentice batik artists as part of our team. Through our apprentice program and batik workshops, we have made the first step to ensuring that Hmong Batik can survive for future generations, however, it is not yet enough. Traditional Hmong Batik in Laos is on a fast path to extinction. Due to various reasons, hand drawn Hmong batik has been almost completely replaced by mechanical methods to create batik patterns. These products can be made quickly and sold inexpensively in the markets. As a result, the meaning, technique and understanding of the traditional motifs is rapidly being lost.