Cai Xiaming: The Art and Heritage of Suzhou Kesi Masters

Cornered Grace – Silver Radiance Edition Earrings
Cai Xiaming is a senior arts and crafts artist, a Suzhou Arts and Crafts Master, a representative inheritor of the world intangible cultural heritage of kesi weaving at the municipal level, and a cultural and creative talent in Zijin, Jiangsu Province. She has studied under renowned kesi masters such as Wang Jinshan, Mo Zhongying, and Li Caifu, and has been in the industry for 36 years. In 2023, she was named one of the Forbes China's Top 100 Outstanding Craftsmen.
Her works have won numerous national and provincial arts and crafts awards, including two Jiangsu Province Literature and Art Awards, the highest "Winter Flower" Award, the Gold Medal at the 5th Zijin Design Competition, and the 2023 Jiangsu Province "Art Expo Cup" Special Gold Medal. In 2017, she collaborated with international designer Lawrence Xu to bring kesi weaving to Paris Fashion Week. In 2018, her work was collected by former French First Lady Brigitte Macron at the Louvre Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition in France, and her kesi portrait "Marilyn Monroe" has been permanently collected by the organizers. Breaking through traditional techniques, she mastered the "double-sided, three-different" kesi weaving technique, holding four invention patents and over 100 copyrights. Focusing on technical innovation and practical application, she develops artistic and functional kesi cultural and creative products, promoting the contemporary development of intangible cultural heritage techniques.
蔡霞明，正高级工艺美术师，苏州市工艺美术大师，世界非物质文化遗产缂丝织造技艺市级代表性传承人，江苏省紫金文化创意英才。师承王金山、莫忠瑛、李才福等缂丝名家，从业36年，2023年入选福布斯中国杰出匠人TOP100。
其作品屡获国家级、省级工艺美术大奖，包括两届江苏省文艺大奖最高奖“迎春花”奖、第五届紫金设计大赛金奖、2023年江苏省“艺博杯”特别金奖等。2017年与国际设计师劳伦斯·许合作，将缂丝带上巴黎时装周；2018年法国卢浮宫非遗展上，作品获法国前第一夫人布丽吉特·马克龙收藏，缂丝肖像《玛丽莲·梦露》被主办方永久珍藏。
她突破传统技法，掌握“双面三异”缂织工艺，拥有发明专利4项、版权100余项。注重技艺创新与实用转化，开发兼具艺术性、功能性的缂丝文创产品，推动非遗技艺当代发展。