Meng Yongguo
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Meng Yongguo, Male, Han, from Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Faxiu (Ⅶ-127). The tradition is documented in Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Faxiu in Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang: It is mainly distributed in Lucheng and Ouhai districts, Pingyang, Ruian, and Yongjia counties, and Yueqing City of Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, and in recent years has gradually extended to other parts of the country. Its origins can be traced back to the Yuan dynasty, and it was transmitted among the people during the Ming and Qing periods.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Meng Yongguo is anchored in the documented technical standards of Faxiu in Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Faxiu in Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang: Wenzhou hair embroidery is a traditional hair-embroidery craft transmitted in Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province. Hair embroidery is a traditional handicraft that uses natural human hair as material and the needle as a tool: a sketch is outlined on tautened cloth, and the image is then shaped by hand with needle and thread. Wenzhou hair embroidery has distinct regional characteristics and unique technique. It uses the needle as tool and long hair as material, embroidering on a satin ground. Its craft process comprises conceiving and composing the design, selecting the hair and tensioning the ground fabric, transferring the draft, embroidering to shape the image, taking the piece off the frame and mounting it, and fitting the frame. The embroidered surface is worked mainly with line, or with a combination of line and area; the changes in density and layering of the stitches are controlled entirely by hand, applying the stitch according to the object to shape the image. Its craft forms include monochrome hair embroidery, colored hair embroidery, and ground-building with supplementary coloring. Its creative themes are rich, covering figure portraits, scenery, landscape, flowers and birds, still life, Buddhist images, and much else. Its representative works include the Buddhist-themed Guanyin (Avalokitesvara) worked by traditional methods, the hometown-themed Solitary Islet in the River, and modern figure portraits worked by borrowing the expressive techniques of pencil sketching. Unlike the dense close stitching and fully covered ground of traditional silk-thread embroidery, Wenzhou hair embroidery keeps the logic of the hair and the stitching clearly visible; taking 'apply the stitch to suit the object, let the method follow the mind' as its creative principle, its works are of plain, quiet color, fine and delicate, with a distinctive texture, and can be preserved for a long time. Wenzhou hair embroidery is transmitted mainly through master-apprentice and family modes. Masters teach by word and example; apprentices follow the master in learning knowledge, skills, and the rules of the trade, and then gradually accumulate experience in practice. Wenzhou hair embroidery follows the aesthetic principles of folk craft and carries a distinctive artistic form; passed down from generation to generation, it is continually innovated upon, and its skill level is accumulated and raised. It contains rich historical and cultural information and is of important significance for studying many aspects of past periods, especially Wenzhou's crafts and aesthetics, beliefs, and folk customs. As an important item of cultural heritage, it has rich humanistic content; it is the crystallization of the wisdom and creativity of the people, embodying their vision of a better life. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Archival Records of Process Steps": Its craft process comprises conceiving and composing the design, selecting the hair and tensioning the ground fabric, transferring the draft, embroidering to shape the image, taking the piece off the frame and mounting it, and fitting the frame. "Guanyin": Its Guanyin, worked by traditional method in hair, shows how the lustre of hair can carry the downcast gaze of the bodhisattva. "Solitary Islet in the River": A home subject — the pagoda of the islet in the Ou river — where tide and tower are set in contrast to give the panel a maritime sweep. "Portraits after life drawing": Its subjects run from portraits and landscapes to birds and Buddhist figures, including modern portraits made after the manner of life drawing.
Archival Records of Process Steps
Its craft process comprises conceiving and composing the design, selecting the hair and tensioning the ground fabric, transferring the draft, embroidering to shape the image, taking the piece off the frame and mounting it, and fitting the frame.
Guanyin
Its Guanyin, worked by traditional method in hair, shows how the lustre of hair can carry the downcast gaze of the bodhisattva.
Solitary Islet in the River
A home subject — the pagoda of the islet in the Ou river — where tide and tower are set in contrast to give the panel a maritime sweep.
Portraits after life drawing
Its subjects run from portraits and landscapes to birds and Buddhist figures, including modern portraits made after the manner of life drawing.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Meng Yongguo was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Faxiu, with Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Faxiu in Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2021 (batch 5), with Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang as its declared area, and Wenzhou Faxiu Research Institute as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
Its origins can be traced back to the Yuan dynasty, and it was transmitted among the people during the Ming and Qing periods.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chen Boyu | Yanchengshidongtai, Jiangsu | — | Other regional school |
| Meng Yongguo | Wenzhoushilucheng, Zhejiang | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。