Chuyện đời chuyện nghề: Nghề gốm Bồ Bát, Ninh Bình
The Bồ Bát Craftsman, Bạch Liên Village, Yên Thành, Yên Mô, Ninh Bình, has been developing since the 10th century.
After the King Lý Công Uẩn moved to Đại La and renamed the village to Thăng Long, Hà Nội,
some of the people in Bạch Liên Village, also moved to Đại La, established their business in Văn Sông Hồng,
creating the Bắt Tràng village today.
Therefore, the Bồ Bát Craftsman in Ninh Bình was lost for about 10 centuries.
More than 1,000 years later, at this place,
the young man Phạm Văn Vang, 18 years old,
set up the Bắt Tràng to study Taoism, determined to rebuild the village.
He is now an excellent craftsman, director of the Bồ Bát Craftsman,
with a scale of more than 300 square meters,
which is the first and only Bạch Liên village to be built after a long period of dilapidation.
Bồ Bát Craftsman Village is now Bạch Liên Village,
in Yên Thành, Yên Mô, Ninh Bình Province.
According to the record, Bồ Bát Craftsman Village,
at that time belonged to Trường Yên,
flourished thousands of years ago,
with unique white-colored products for use and construction.
Much of this has been confirmed by the traces of soil and thick clay,
found when excavating in this area.
In the 9th and 10th centuries, the products of Bồ Bát Craftsman Village were very popular.
The talented craftsmen of the village created high-end products,
such as the Dạch Đắt Nung Đại Việt Quốc Quân Thành Chuyên brick,
a special type of brick used for construction.
In addition, there were fine-grained products such as
the head of a dragon, the face of a beast, a bowl of plates, and tools.
The products of Bồ Bát Craftsman Village were honored with unparalleled fame,
so the village was named Bát Cống.
In 1997, the historians came to Bồ Bát Craftsman Village.
At that time, I was still a student.
I joined them in their research.
When I found the relics left by the ancestors,
such as the clay jars or the clay pots,
along with the objects,
there were some ancient tombs right next to them.
When people died, they were buried in the clay jars.
I felt that the ancestors here loved and were passionate about the craft.
They lived and died in the craft.
My passion for the craft and my desire to restore the craft
was encouraged by their efforts.
In the park of Bồ Bát Craftsman Village,
Phạm Văn Văng and Phạm Bạch Liên
came to the village of Yên Mô.
With a cheerful smile,
Văng excitedly told us about his father's journey to restore the craft.
In 2005, after graduating from high school,
Phạm Văn Văng went to Bát Tràng
to find his uncle's family doing the craft to study.
After three years, his uncle taught him all the secrets.
His skills improved.
Phạm Văn Văng went to Bắc Giang,
to study and work.
His love for Phạm Văn Văng grew.
Phạm Văn Văng married Phạm Văn Văng's daughter.
They returned to Bạch Liên and started the craft.
I was born and raised in Bồ Bát Craftsman Village.
During my research,
I found out that there is a craft in my village
that has been around for a long time.
It is also known that people in Bát Tràng
often say that
their hometown is Bồ Bát Craftsman Village, Mà Gia Đi.
So, when I researched about the history,
I found out that
my craft has been around for a long time.
And its characteristics,
through the process of learning,
is one of the crafts
that is closely related to Vietnam's kings.
And until now,
I am determined to restore this craft.
In the early days,
Phạm Văn Văng built a small factory with a low-tech furnace.
From dawn to dusk,
Phạm Văn Văng always rode his motorbike
to deliver goods to tourist attractions.
Those are rings, necklaces,
and some animals made of clay,
which are sold in cities like Nha Trang,
Vũng Tàu, Hồ Chí Minh City, and Hà Nội.
After researching and grasping the market,
he decided to borrow more than 100 million VND from a bank
to invest in his craft.
He recruited 10 young people in his hometown
and sent them to Bát Tràng to study.
In 2009,
when Bồ Bát Craftsman Village was on the market,
he opened a class
and directly taught
by hand at the factory
for more than 50 workers.
After researching and grasping the market,
Phạm Văn Văng opened a class
and directly taught
by hand at the factory
for more than 50 workers.
At the factory,
Phạm Văn Văng built
necklaces, bracelets,
and some animals made of clay,
which are sold in cities like Nha Trang,
Vũng Tàu, Hồ Chí Minh City, and Hà Nội.
Although I was born and raised in the clay world,
the old people in the village
did not work in the industry for a long time,
so everything for me
had to be learned
and I could
research by myself.
After that,
I went to Bát Tràng to study
and gain more knowledge
in the industry.
When I came back,
I opened the factory.
In the working period,
it was very difficult for me
because I had to learn from experience
and capital,
then the production platform.
Right on my territory,
before I started to restore my job,
the transportation was also very difficult
and the distance from the city center
was also far.
Although he grasped all the knowledge,
techniques, and even the secrets of the job,
the first molding machine was a failure.
Learning to know
how to heat the furnace too quickly,
too slowly,
will also lead to the product being worn out,
sluggish.
To balance the soil,
the mold, and the heat of the furnace
is a whole problem.
After going through a lot of trouble
in the furnace,
I had to give up and
gradually create perfect products.
However, besides the difficulties,
there are also benefits,
that is the raw material.
On the ground,
there is a type of clay called
No. 1 white cement.
It only takes 50-70% of the time
compared to other types of clay,
but it still ensures the quality
in terms of softness and hardness.
After molding,
few products are broken
compared to other types of clay.
This is an advantageous condition
for the survival and development
of the ancient clay.
I often make and draw
images and cultures
of the people of my hometown
such as the historical sites
of Đình Bù Lĩnh,
or the famous scenic spots
of Ninh Bình,
Trắng An, Tam Cốc, Bắc Diệp
to promote my products
along with the images
of my hometown
to go into the products.
For some products,
I follow the orders of customers.
For example,
when it comes to
the tourism of a region,
I often bring images
of that region to my products.
Now,
when the types of white cement
from Bạch Liên village
are spreading in the international market,
many people are surprised
by the difficulties of young people
who are trying to restore
the traditional craftsmanship of their hometown.
Currently, the main products of the business
are cups, jars, windmills,
paintings, and decorations.
More than 20,000 products are produced
In 2014, Mr. Vang's business
produced nearly 300,000 products,
earned more than 2 billion VND,
creating jobs for tens of thousands of workers
with an average salary of 1.5 to 3.5 million VND
per person per month.
In 2016,
the increase of 30% of products,
labor and income of workers also increased.
I remember
when I went to Saigon
to work in the market,
there was almost no money
and I remember
that I had to sleep
in the park
because
it was a lotus garden.
The cups produced in the market
are well-rated
due to their thick, white and thick cement
with a good chemical content
that is half the same
as the same type of products in the market.
The team of experts
focused on research, selection,
understanding the characteristics,
and the characteristics of each product
in order to convey the image
of each product.
The cup made by Mr. Vang
was selected by the Ministry of Commerce
and honored as a national
industrial and agricultural product
in 2015.
In 2008,
Mr. Vang was the first person
to introduce the cup made by Mr. Vang
at the Art Exhibition in Hanoi.
Many people were surprised
when they learned about this type of cup.
Mr. Vang has been in Hanoi
for 20 years.
He has also been in the Art Exhibition
of traditional craft villages.
Currently, we have supported
many businesses in this craft village
by providing financial support
and promoting trade.
Every year,
we also support
the construction
of factories,
investment,
improvement of equipment
and new manufacturing facilities.
We also provide
international support
to businesses
in the country.
For example,
we provide support
to the Chinese
to promote
our products
not only in Vietnam but also abroad.
After nearly 20 years of studying
and working,
Mr. Vang's business
seems to have no end
in the struggle and development.
Now, his direction is
to create his own mark
by making cups,
especially white cups
that used to bring back the spirit,
especially the patterns and patterns
related to the historical values
of the land of the capital
and the products
to create their own mark.
Mr. Vang's ambition
is to restore the traditional cup making
so that my business
can be recognized
and restored successfully
to develop these products
in the domestic and abroad market
as well as to let
tourists know
about my hometown
to develop it
and the business
to be expanded in the people.
In the changing flow of manufacturing,
in the depths of history,
perhaps nothing lasts forever.
Thousands of years ago,
the cups used to float on the boat.
Over time,
the old patterns are gone.
Therefore,
Mr. Vang's efforts to restore
the traditional craftsmanship
are invaluable
not only for the people
but also for the restoration
of the cultural and historical values
of the land of the capital.