Week 8: Hmong History

 Jacqueline Yee

ASA 141 

Week 8 blog post

Speaking through Cloth: Teaching Hmong History and Culture through Texture Art by Ava McCall, discusses paj ntaub, and how it helped document and preserve the Hmong culture over time. Before doing the reading, I did not know that much about Hmong culture, so I found it very fascinating to read about the paj ntaub. The designs and intricacy of pattern development show how detailed of a story the cloths portray. The designs often depicted family life, whether it was harvesting or working together, it is apparent that the community is highly valued. The story cloths also developed and changed with the Hmong people’s state of being. The cloths traditionally used symbols, important geometric patterns and bright colors. It was especially important when celebrating the New Year or big familial occasions. When Hmong fled to Thailand refugee camps, these cloths became a source of income. They also began to adopt Thai style clothing. Later, when the cloths were sold for income, they began sewing them with more muted colors. But throughout the changes, the main purpose and idea of the paj ntaub remained the same. Each design told a story of their history, which highlights the evolution of fashion.

In addition, the fact that both men and women took part in the process was also interesting. In all of the readings so far, sewing and textiles have been associated with women throughout history. In garment factories, especially throughout the development of the garment district in New York City, or in factories in Asia, women are the one's sewing. But Hmong men helped design and embroider in order to generate income.

 

McCall mentions the cloths/designs began to be integrated into bedspreads, pillow covers, aprons, and bookmarks (234); do you think this changes the meaning or value of the traditional cloth? (An example of the bedspread with Hmong textiles is depicted on the right https://www.pinterest.com/pin/164944405075860784/).