Shanxi wedding customs

There is an interesting exhibition of old Shanxi wedding customs, furniture, and related items, in the Arts and Crafts Museum of Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi province, that opened on Feb 14 and runs to March 15, with two parts:

One contains several dozen types of wedding furniture and related items from the Pingyao Lacquer Ware Co in Pingyao county, Shanxi, which has its roots in the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), and the Shanxi Arts and Crafts Group. It applies traditional Pingyao lacquering techniques to modern furniture and has attracted large crowds. There are jewel cases, folding screens, pen holders, food containers, cabinets, lacquered paintings, paper cuts, and other indoor decorations. The objects retain traditional cultural elements while considering contemporary aesthetic needs. The other section contains traditional marriage objects that were popular from the 1970s to the '80s, such as items for the bride, radios, sewing machines, wrist watches, gold and silver jewelry, embroidery and daily necessities.

Hosts of the exhibition are the Shanxi Arts and Crafts Group and Pingyao Lacquer Ware Co, with organization help from the Arts and Crafts Museum of Shanxi and the Yellow River Arts Museum. This is part of a folk culture exhibition series for Spring Festival. Local people like the exhibition and enjoy seeing the marriage customs, such as a sedan chair, formal wedding ceremony, traditional wedding photos, cos-play activities, and other Shanxi wedding traditions, as a way to add a happy mood to the Spring Festival.