During the 2026 Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival, the 'Crafting Rural Beauty · Blossoms Along the Silk Road' international exchange for rural artisans was held at the China Arts and Crafts Museum · China Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum. Yuan Duanjiao, General Manager of Shaanxi Longtou Guoqi Cultural Industry Co., Ltd., provincial-level representative inheritor of lacquering techniques, and head of Zhengdaming, attended as a Chinese rural master artisan, showcasing Zhengdaming lacquerware and Niuwang Guoqi materials.
The event brought together rural master artisans from across the country to present representative works and demonstrate the inheritance and innovation of traditional crafts in the context of rural revitalisation. At the event, Yuan Duanjiao presented high-end Zhengdaming lacquerware vessels, lacquer jewellery, tea ware and refined raw lacquer materials, and introduced the full industry chain from the 5,000 mu of self-owned lacquer groves in the Qinba mountains to tapping, refining, lacquering and finishing.
Lacquer as a Medium: Showcasing Rural Artisan Skill
The China Arts and Crafts Museum is a national-level platform for displaying arts, crafts and intangible cultural heritage. This appearance recognises both the century-old lacquer-house heritage of Zhengdaming and the integrated capability of the Shaanxi lacquer industry from raw-material cultivation to finished vessels. The red lacquer cups, mother-of-pearl-inlaid plates and bodiless jewellery on the Zhengdaming stand attracted many visitors.
Yuan Duanjiao noted that Chinese lacquer is a natural material language unique to the East. From tapping the lacquer tree to completing a single piece can take from dozens of days to several months, with every step depending on handcraft experience and coordination with temperature and humidity. Participating in this event was intended to show more people that lacquer is not only heritage in a display case, but also an Eastern aesthetic that can enter daily life and reach international markets.
From Grove to Display Case, a Traceable Industry Chain
Zhengdaming Cultural Industry Group has more than 5,000 mu of lacquer groves in Pingli, Ankang, Shaanxi. Every product is recorded with "one piece, one file", tracking the lacquer batch, artisan process and completion date. The vessels on display could be traced through the full flow from grove raw material and refined raw lacquer to final lacquering.
The stand also presented Niuwang Guoqi brand refined raw lacquer, lacquer craft material kits and drift-lacquer experience sets, supplying materials and process support to museums, universities, ICH workshops and culture enthusiasts.
International Exchange Brings Lacquer to a Wider Stage
During the event, several international guests exchanged ideas with rural artisans. Yuan Duanjiao demonstrated the basic steps of lacquering and invited guests to touch the surface of the vessels and feel the warm lustre formed after many processes. This face-to-face craft demonstration became a window for Chinese and foreign cultural exchange.
Rural revitalisation needs not only industrial development but also cultural expression. Zhengdaming will take this event as a new starting point to continue deepening its work across the entire Chinese lacquer industry chain, allowing traditional lacquering craft to take on new vitality in contemporary life and international markets.
About Zhengdaming
Founded in 1925, Zhengdaming is the flagship brand of Shaanxi Longtou Guoqi Cultural Industry Co., Ltd. Established in 2016 and headquartered in Longtou Village, Pingli County, Ankang, Shaanxi, the company is a cultural-industry enterprise centred on natural raw lacquer, animated by intangible-cultural-heritage craftsmanship and oriented toward Eastern living aesthetics. Guided by the principle "Integrity in the heart, clarity in the vessel," the brand draws on more than 5,000 mu of lacquer groves in the Qinling Mountains and operates a full industrial chain running from lacquer-tree planting, raw-lacquer harvesting and refining to lacquerware design, sales and cultural-tourism experiences, with four brands under its umbrella: Zhengdaming, Longtou Guoqi, Niuwang Guoqi and Suishiji.