At the age of 93, when her health is no longer as before, Ms. Sung Thi Co still regularly attends Lung Tam Cooperative to paint beeswax. Her eyes are blurred, her hands are slow, but each stroke of hers is still accurate and meticulous, as if containing the cultural length of the Mong people through many generations. Attached to the profession since over 10 years old, she has been holding a pen for more than 80 years, keeping her love for painting beeswax on linen fabric.
According to her, Mong women must know how to weave linen and paint beeswax. These are not only life skills but also show dexterity and virtue. However, in modern life, fewer and fewer young people are interested in the profession, so despite her old age, she still persistently paints every day to preserve and pass on to future generations.
The motifs on the linen fabric in her hands are not just decorations. Each square, circle, diamond or sawtooth has its own meaning, expressing the desire for a full life, bumper crops, favorable weather, associated with the image of heaven and earth and mountains and forests.
To complete a traditional linen fabric, the craftsman must go through many elaborate steps: drawing beeswax, boiling the fabric to separate the wax, dyeing indigo and then sun-drying. All are handmade, requiring patience and meticulousness in every detail.
For artisan Sung Thi Co, the greatest joy is seeing Lung Tam Cooperative increasingly develop, creating more jobs for Mong women and preserving the traditional craft. Although there are still many difficulties, from the elderly to the young, they are still determined to stick with the craft, and at the same time strive to train the next generation, contributing to preserving and maintaining the traditional linen weaving and wax painting craft.
