Patchwork artist finds international fame

Jin has created innumerable pieces of patchwork.

Sichuan in stitches

Students learn weaving Li brocade in Haikou

"In my eyes, everyone is unique in the world and has one's own story," Jin says.

In 1991, her husband was in hospital with cancer.

"I was in quite a bad mood at that time, but I had to have a strong will. I spent all my spare time on patchwork because when I did patchwork, I could forget all the unpleasantness," says Jin. "The rainbow quilt was created at that time."

The quilt was a gift for her unborn grandson, and she wrote a letter to her grandson after finishing it seven years later.

"It took grandma seven years to sew the quilt stitch by stitch. My dreams, love and expectations are in the stitches. I hope you can become a surefooted boy and can walk forward step by step," Jin wrote in her letter.

In 2010, Jin was invited to be an expert advisor of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. The institute has established the Jin Yuanshan Patchwork Studio, which is used for patchwork studies.

"There is abundant information and excellent professors at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. It can provide me a wide platform to research and develop patchwork," Jin says. "I hope patchwork can become part of daily life and we can create more daily products with patchwork elements."

She has also delivered two lectures to the faculty and students of Tsinghua University's College of Arts and Design.

In March 2009, she held an exhibition of her patchwork at the invitation of Tsinghua University.

"In Tsinghua, I met a young student who showed great passion for patchwork. He was a postgraduate student at that time and learned patchwork from me for two years. Eventually he chose patchwork as his graduation project," says Jin. "His endeavor was very gratifying for me. It will promote the development of patchwork so more young people are willing to learn it."

In February, Jin received an invitation to attend the 48th Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC in June with China's Minister of Culture. This is the first time China has taken part in the festival.

"I have no idea which works I should take to the US. I hope I can show Chinese patchwork at their best in the limited space," Jin says.