REPORT ON THE INVENTORY OF THE CRAFT OF MAKING ĐÔNG HỒ FOLK WOODBLOCK PRINTINGS

CONTENTS

 

INVENTORY RESULTS	3
I. Identify names, practice spaces and community custodians	5
1. Name of the heritage:	5
2. Domains	5
3. Geographical area and cultural space for practicing heritage	6
4. Community custodians of the element:	9
5. The birth and development of Đông Hồ folk printings	17
II. Form of expression and process of heritage practice	18
1. Forms of expression	18
2.  Printing process	18
3. Printing	21
4. Printing tools	23
5. The process of printing pictures	23
6. Dry printings	24
7. Physical and mental products created during the practice	24
III. Values of Đông Hồ folk printings	25
1. Ideological values	25
2. The artistic values ​​of Đông Hồ folk printings:	27
IV. Current situation and changes to the Đông Hồ folk printing profession	28
1. Current situation of the Đông Hồ folk printing craft	28
2. Variations present in present day Đông Hồ folk printings	29
3.Current status and the risks to the Đông Hồ printing craft	30
V. Role of the government in safeguarding the Craft of Making Folk Woodblock Printings	33
VI. Efforts to safeguard and promote the value of the craft of making Đông Hồ woodblock printings by the community	35
VII. Solutions to protect and promote the values of Đông Hồ folk printings	38
1. Raising the public's awareness of the value of the heritage	38
2. Honor artisans who have the ability to revitalize and develop the craft of making printings	38
3. Expanding product consumption at home and abroad	39
4. Heritage transmission and education:	39
5. Inventory, documentation and scientific research:	39
6. Enhancing sources of natural raw materials and plants	40
7. Improving the quality of Đông Hồ printings	40
Conclusion	40
REFERENCES	41

REPORT ON THE INVENTORY OF THE CRAFT OF

MAKING ĐÔNG HỒ FOLK WOODBLOCK PRINTINGS

Inventory time: April 2018-October 2019

Location: Đông Khê hamlet,  Song Hồ commune,  Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province.

Person in charge: Professor, Dr. Bùi Quang Thanh

In collaboration with: Professor, Dr. Từ Thị Loan, Master Cao Trung Vinh, Master Trần Thị Hiên, and BA. Nguyễn Trung Bình.

With the participation of artisans: Nguyễn Đăng Chế, Nguyễn Đăng Tâm, Nguyễn Hữu Quả, and Nguyễn Thị Oanh.

INTRODUCTION

More than 400 years ago (during the later Lê dynasty),  Đông Hồ printing village (its full name being Đông Hồ folk woodblock printing village), now belonging to Đông Khê village, Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province, produced a famous line of folk printings different from other folk printings in Vietnam, such as: Kim Hoàng printings (Kim Hoàng village, Vân Canh commune, Hoài Đức district former Hà Tây province, now Hà Nội), Hàng Trống printings (Hàng Trống Street, Hanoi) and Sinh village printings (Lại Ân hamlet, Phú Mẫu commune, Phú Vang district, Thừa Thiên Huế province). Throughout Vietnamese history, these famous folk printings have contributed significantly to preserving the cultural heritage of the nation, helping ensure that cultural life in Vietnam, down through the generations, is always rich and varied.

Among the four folk printing lines of the four traditional Vietnamese art villages, Đông Hồ woodblock printings have the most outstanding values, having survived a long time as a special attraction for many generations. Over the past hundred years, Đông Hồ woodblock printings have become a cultural and spiritual object that is familiar to almost all members of the general public across multi-ethnic Vietnam, in addition to being welcomed in many countries around the world. 

Over the past half century, Đông Hồ folk printings have become objects of research, introduction and discovery of many domestic and foreign scientific works and articles.

Due to the artisanal creativity of the Đông Hồ people, this line of folk woodblock printings has affirmed the values ​​of its own cultural identity, from printing characteristics, manufacturing process (crafted entirely manually), printing paper (mop disk shell powder mixed with rice flour paste), colors (natural colors from plants and other, unadulterated items), encompassing five printing types (religious printings, historical printings, narrative printings, wishing printings, and daily life printings). Đông Hồ printings are the convergence of the aspirations for a happy, prosperous life, and an assessment of social phenomena, reflecting many aspects of the rustic, simple and close life of Vietnamese culture, through vivid woodblock printings.

Experiencing many ups and downs, sometimes forgotten, Đông Hồ folk woodblock printings have been greatly eroded and, in the current social climate, are at risk of change and commercialization. The lack of artisans, and the changing craft practiced by many families due to the needs of life, are strongly impacting on the survival of this famous folk printing village. The next generation does not want to inherit their father's tradition.

Safeguarding and promoting the cultural values ​​of an art village is a practical and meaningful task in the context of today’s society. The development of the dossier requesting the United Nations Education and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) to inscribe the craft of Đông Hồ folk woodblock printings on the List of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding for humanity is a positive move forward. It is an urgent task to ensure the craft’s vitality for the current generation and for future generations. As a result of the above mentioned issues, the scientific inventory of the Đông Hồ folk printing village to assess the status and value of the heritage, upon which measures proposed to safeguard and promote the craft in contemporary life will be based, is an extremely necessary and useful task.

- The inventory results of 2018 have been updated with some data collected during the 2012 Đông Hồ Folk printing inventory project of the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts Studies by professor, Dr. Từ Thị Loan.

The scientific inventory aims to perform the following tasks:

- Define correctly and fully the names, types and places of Đông Hồ folk printings;    

- Identify custodians of the heritage: individuals and communities that still practice the Đông Hồ folk printing craft; and the number of artisans, participants and other resources that play an active role in the safeguarding and transmission of the heritage;    

- Clarify the process through which Đông Hồ folk printings came into existence; the forms of its expression and process of practice; skills, printing techniques and methods;

- Survey related cultural spaces, and material and mental products created during practice; and the role of the heritage in community life today.    

- Assess the risk of the culture disappearing, explain the cause of its disappearance, and propose measures to safeguard the Đông Hồ folk printing craft.    

INVENTORY RESULTS

I. Identify names, practice spaces and community custodians

1. Name of the heritage:

The official name of the element: The Craft of Making Folk Woodblock Printings

The other names of the element: Đông Hồ Folk Woodblock Printings, Printings of Hồ Village, Đông Hồ Printings, Đông Hồ Folk Printings.

According to the general opinion of the artisans, folk printings were printed from sets of woodblocks created and transmitted by generations of Đông Hồ villagers and practiced by many families over hundreds of years. Despite this line of woodblock printings being referred to by different names, it has always been associated with the place where generations of artisans have created and practiced this traditional craft - i.e., Đông Hồ village (which now belongs to Đông Khê village), Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province.

Đông Hồ folk printings are a traditional art form, closely linked to the livelihoods and daily life of generations of Đông Hồ people, reflecting a closeness and intimacy through their depiction of scenes from daily life, including how people deal with the ecological environment and social relations.  Đông Hồ folk printings, therefore, have features that distinguish them from other folk printings, such as Hàng Trống, Sình village (Huế), and Kim Hoàng printings (Hanoi).

2. Domains

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 4, Chapter II of Circular No. 04/2010/TT-BVHTTDL, dated 30^th June, 2010, of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Stipulating the inventory of intangible cultural heritage, the craft of making Đông Hồ folk printings belongs to the "Traditional craft".

3. Geographical area and cultural space for practicing heritage:

The Đông Hồ folk printing craft came into existence and developed in Đông Hồ village, previously called Hồ village, Đông Mại village, and in Sino-Vietnamese as Mái village, Hồ canton, Siêu loại district, ancient Kinh Bắc town. Đông Hồ village is now a part of Đông Khê village in Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province.

3.1. Geographical conditions

Đông Hồ village located about 35km from Hà Nội. Đông Khê hamlet is located on the Thiên Đức river (Đuống river)[1], next to the road linking the Northern Region with the East (Hải Dương province), two fertile areas of the Red River Delta. In the past, Đông Hồ village was located close to the Đuống riverbank (only a levee away from it), and there was a folk verse called "There is a cool river with printing jobs".

3.2. History of the village

There are almost no documents or epitaphs in existence that record the process through which the Song Hồ villages in general, and Đông Hồ village in particular, formed and developed during ancient times.  The existing archaeological artifacts, legends, customs, and practices, however, indicate that it was a long process of exploitation to create the prosperous villages of today.

Following the August Revolution of 1945, a revolutionary government was established, and Đông Hồ was divided into three communes: Tú Hồ commune, which includes the villages: Đông Hồ, Tú Khê, Đạo Tú, Xuân Tú, and Tú Tháp; Bắc Hồ commune, which includes the villages: Chương Xá, Lạc Thổ and Lạc Đạo; Đông Côi commune, which includes the villages: Cả, Lẽ and Đông Côi; and Thuận Thanh prefecture, later renamed Thuận Thành district.

In 1966, Tù Hồ and Bắc communes merged forming Song Hồ commune, consisting of seven villages: Đạo Tú, Tú Tháp, Lạc Thổ, Chương Xá, Đông Khê, Lạc Hoài, and Phố Hồ, and belonging to Thuận Thành district, Hà Bắc province.

In 1997, the villages of Lạc Thổ (Lạc Thổ Nam, and Lạc Thổ Bắc), Chương Xá and Phố Hồ were moved to establish the town of Hồ, which along with the four villages of Đông Khê, Đạo Tú, Tú Tháp and Lạc Hoài, make up Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province[2].

Thus, the official name of the land belonging to the ancient Đông Hồ village today is Đông Khê village, Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành district, Bắc Ninh province. Đông Khê hamlet consists of four production teams (also called 4 hamlets): Team 1 and Team 2 from the old Đông Hồ village; Team 3 from the old Khê village; and Team 4 from the old Đạo Tú village.

3.3. Residential characteristics:

In 2019, the population of Song Hồ commune was 7,022 people (incorporating 1,601 households), of which 2,236 persons (509 households) live in Đông Khê village. Đông Khê village has 224,000m² of arable land, which is equal to less than one perch of land per person (approximately 300 m²/person; one perch in the North of Việt Nam = 360m² ).

Due to the small amount of land available for cultivation, secondary jobs have long developed and become the main source of income for the people of Đông Hồ. The old people in Đông Hồ recount that, under the feudalism of Đông Hồ village, they mostly lived off printing and making votive papers. In the whole village, there are only four or five farming households.

The population is small, however, there are 17 different families living in Đông Hồ village, originating from Hai Duong, Thanh Hoa and other places. The families include the Nguyễn families (Nguyễn Đăng, Nguyễn Hữu, Nguyễn Nhân, Nguyễn Bá, Nguyễn Thế, Nguyễn Ngọc, Nguyễn Đức, and Nguyễn Văn), Trần, Hà, Dương, Lê, Lý, and Vương. Following the August Revolution, the Nguyễn Khắc family also began residing in Đông Hồ[3]. The Nguyễn Đức and Nguyễn Văn families are no longer living in the village. 

3.4. Socio-cultural characteristics:

In the past, Đông Hồ village was famous for making votive offerings and folk printings. The people of Đông Hồ make votive offerings and folk printings on a seasonal basis, not all year round. The year is divided into two production seasons: the votive offerings season lasts from the first to the seventh lunar month (around March to August of the solar calendar); and the folk printing season commences following the full moon in July and runs through to the Lunar New Year (from August to February of the solar calendar).

Đình Market was founded by residents of Đạo Tú, Ngọc Tú and Tú Khe villages and became a place to trade colored paper, including paper used in Đông Hồ folk printings. Đình Market has six major meetings per year (on 1, 6, 11, 16, 21 and 26 of the twelfth lunar month) and six secondary ones. Adjacent to Đình market, Đông Hồ market was established within the space of the Đông Hồ village communal house, meeting only once per year from the sixth of the twelfth lunar month to the Tết New Year holiday. In comparison to other markets in the region, Đông Hồ market is special because the only goods sold are folk printings produced by the households of the village. The communal house is well known to people from outside of the village due to the printing market organized in front of it, which, the people call the communal market or the Đông Hồ printing market.

In addition to the two professions with a long history and reputation - i.e., making votive offerings and folk printings -  the people of Đông Hồ village have done many other jobs over the years. From the 1960s to the 1980s, many families expanded their livelihoods to include jobs, such as braiding rugs for export, making curtains, and making toys for Tết New Year and mid-autumn festival celebrations, etc.

During the 1990s, the art of making printings brought low economic returns and was at risk of decline due to consumption bottlenecks; while, at the same time, religious activities began to be more widely practiced in most villages. The State implemented policies to create conditions for people to freely practice their beliefs, reopening a series of temples and pagodas that has increased demand for votive offerings. Dozens of families with inherent skills in the printing business completely switched to making votive goods and have been quick to meet the existing social needs. A few families, however, have stayed loyal to their traditional printing career.

3.5. Spiritual cultural spaces, architectural works and related cultural expressions:

The village tutelary god, Đức Ông, is worshipped at the communal house of Đông Hồ. The Đông Hồ communal house is a special space associated with the printing industry of the village. For hundreds of years, the villagers organized a market in the spiritual cultural space of the communal house exclusively for the purpose of buying and selling printings. Arriving at the market, the brilliant colors of the printings can be seen displayed both inside and outside the communal house. Printings hanging on strings, on walls, and displayed on sedge mats, with crowds of buyers and sellers around, which leads to the printing market also being referred to as the printing festival. With its unique historical and cultural values, which includes its connection to the printing market and traditional printing profession, in 1993, the communal house was inscribed as a historical-cultural relic by the State.

4. Community custodians of the element:

In recent years, the printing craft has gradually declined, with most of the villagers producing votive offerings.  Now, only three families [the artisan family of Nguyễn Đăng Chế, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam (transferred in 2008 to the eldest son, Nguyễn Hữu Hoa.  The family of the second son of Mr. Sam are Nguyễn Hữu Quả has been established its own printing workshop. The family members play a key role in directly preserving and promoting the values of Đông Hồ folk printings in contemporary society.

4.1. Members of the community play a key role in practicing and safeguarding Đông Hồ printings

4.1.1. Artisan family of Nguyễn Đăng Chế:

- Artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế:

Artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế, an ethnic Kinh person, was born in 1936 and raised in a long-standing printing family in Đông Hồ village. According to his own words, his life was the 20th in succession. Mr. Chế learned the craft as an apprentice of his father from a young age. He was a lecturer on Đông Hồ folk printing techniques at Hà Nội University of Industrial Fine Arts (1964-1975), and later worked at the Arts and Music Publishing House (1975-1991).

Following his retirement, Nguyễn Đăng Chế grew concerned that the traditional printing industry of the village would disappear, so he saved up his pension and bought the woodblocks from ten different families that had been previously used in the old profession, while carving and adding many new woodblocks to the set. 

 As today, Nguyễn Đăng Chế’s family owns about 1,200 woodblocks, including 100 ancient woodblocks, the oldest of which is 200 years old, and the youngest about 50 years old. His family currently produces approximately 180 different printings, including nine distinct types: Tứ Bình printings consisting of 17 sets (with 68 woodblocks,); Seven word printings (with 21 woodblocks,); Ngũ sự printings (with 26 woodblocks,); 150 sets of printings depicting different themes (with 600 woodblocks,); and 70 sets of new printings engraved with old themes (with 350 woodblocks). 900 different woodblocks are currently in regularly use by his family to produce printings to sell to domestic and foreign tourists.

The oldest inscription is a set of 26 woodblocks used to create a picture of Ngũ sự (the ancestor’s worship a printing depicting worshiping objects: aloe wood container, incense bowl, candle holder, vase, and fruit tray).  According to Nguyễn Đăng Chế, this set of woodblocks originated 200 years ago, produced by family members eight generations ago.

The oldest set of printings, incorporating four printings, in Nguyễn Đăng Chế’s collection depict the story of Thạch sanh. While the printing is now damaged, it still hangs in the most solemn place of the family gallery.

In 2010, French folk printing collector Jean Piere Pascal[4] visited Đông Hồ printing village and presented artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế with a set of photo books featuring 100 original Đông Hồ printings that he had collected over the years. Nguyễn Đăng Chế subsequently used  these original printings to carve 100 pieces over a four year period (2010-2014), adding to the family’s rich and diverse source of printings.

In addition to hundreds of woodblock printings passed down from the previous generations and bought from other families engaged in printing activities in the village, artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế has added about 200 new woodblock prints, incorporating 100 restored printings, as well as 20 new and innovative printings based on modern themes, such as: Uncle Ho with children; Capturing American pilots;, Digging ditches in case of drought; Trading cooperation; Trading cooperatives; Improving agricultural tools; Women with three responsibilities; and Don't let them escape.

Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Chế has played the role for decades; he is the master craftsman and soul of the most important and decisive stages in the process of making family printings, such as: finding the subject, structure, layout of the printings, carving woodblocks, and mixing colors, etc.

Up until now, he has passed the printing craft on to his sons, daughters, daughters-in-law, sons-in-law, and grandchildren, in addition to the grandchildren of more than twenty other people, including Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Tâm, one of the four sons of the family. Nguyễn Đăng Tâm has been able to handle most of the art business from the beginning to the end of the production chain, as well as making decisions on issues related to the production of input materials and organization of the use of these materials by the extended family in the production of outputs.

Artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế is a current member of the Vietnam Folk Arts Association and Vietnam Fine Arts Association, was a member of Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Bắc Ninh province for many terms, and was awarded the "Golden Hand" by the Indochina Fine Arts Program - Vietnam Cooperative Union - Vietnam Fine Arts Association. In 2000, he was awarded a Medal from the Ministry of Culture and Information for the preservation of cultural heritage. In 2007, the Central Association of Vietnam Craft Villages awarded him the title "Artisan of craft villages". While in 2012, the People's Committee of Bắc Ninh province awarded him the title "Artisan of Bắc Ninh Province". He was also awarded the Certificate of Merit by Bắc Ninh Province, and has received other certificates of merit from many other central and local agencies.

- Practitioners in the family:

+ Mrs. Nguyễn Thị Tâm (artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế’s wife), born in 1934, is an ethnic Kinh person. When she first married into the family, she assisted in many stages of the printing process, such as printing pictures, drawing strokes and exposing printings under the sun, etc. Nowadays, due to her age, she only participates in some printing works when there is a lot of work to do.

+ The eldest son's family:

Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Phùng,  born in 1959, and his wife, Ms. Nguyễn Thị Dung, born in 1960, are ethnic Kinh people. The married couple represent the main personnel at Mr. Chế's printing production facility. Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Phùng mainly takes care of preparing raw materials to produce input materials and selling products in Hanoi and other localities.

The couple have two children, Nguyễn Đăng Đức, born in 1984, and Nguyễn Đăng Khoa, born in 1986, who both possess printing knowledge and skills and can support their families when needed.

+ Family of the second son:

Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Dũng, born in 1963, currently works for a state agency, but still helps his father and wife to make printings on Saturdays and Sundays.

Dung's wife, Ms. Mai Thị Thanh Huyền, born in 1969, is one of the main personnel at Chế's printing production facility.

The couple have two children: Nguyễn Đăng Nam, born in 1990, has been able to support his family, and they also have a young child born in 2004.

+ Family of the third son:

Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Lung, born in 1966, currently works for a state agency, but still helps his family make printings on Saturdays and Sundays.

Mr. Luân's wife, Mrs. Đào Ngọc Thu, born in 1974, is a permanent employee of Chế's printing factory.

+ The fourth daughter's family:

Ms. Nguyễn Thị Minh Phương, born in 1969, though married, still also participates in Mr. Chế's printing business.

Phương has two children with her husband, Nguyễn Ngọc Chiến, born in 1966: Nguyễn Ngọc Mai, born in 1993, and Nguyễn Ngọc Anh, born in 1998, who can also assist in printing.

+ The fifth son's family:

Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Tâm, born in 1972, was passed on all the secrets, professional skills and  business management acumen needed to run the current production facility by his father Nguyễn Đăng Chế. He is a woodblock carver at a difficult stage of the process, requiring a high level of skill.

Mr. Tâm's wife, Mrs. Trần Thị Tố Tâm, born in 1974, is the daughter of another artisan from the village, Trần Nhật Tấn (who passed away in 2008). Prior to his death, Mr. Tan gave his daughter and son-in-law all the ancient plates and secrets of his profession. She is a professional printing artisan, who also works at a difficult stage of the process, requiring high skills.

Nguyễn Đăng Tâm and his wife have three children: Nguyễn Thu Thảo, born in 1993, Nguyễn Đăng Hiếu, born in 1996, and Nguyễn Thảo My, born in 2003.

All the grandchildren in the family, older and younger, participate in the printing business to different degrees, such as papermaking, with each mobilized in completing specific tasks.

+ Practicing professionals outside the family:

In addition to his family members, Mr. Chế hires two workers from outside, namely Nguyễn Hữu Hạnh (born in 1973) and Nguyễn Đức Tám (born in 1975), from An Bình, Bắc Ninh. They are both highly skilled workers that mainly perform mold engraving work in the production of woodblock printings, in addition to other jobs, such as transporting the wood from which carving boards are made, etc. Nowadays, there is only Nguyễn Đức Tám who still works for Mr. Chế’s family.

4.1.2. Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam's family

- Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam

Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam was born in 1930 and raised in a family with a long tradition of making printings. From an early age, he was passionate about the unique colors of Đông Hồ folk printings and started studying the craft when he was five or six years old. He said that because he was poor, he had to study to help continue his father's work, and through good times and bad, he was determined not to give the craft up.

When the village established the Đông Hồ Printing Production Cooperative, Nguyễn Hữu Sam was involved from the very beginning, serving as Head of the cooperative from 1967 to 1970, during which time the cooperative had as many as 50 members.

From 1970 to 1989, Nguyễn Hữu Sam was the captain of the printing production team, directing over production and technology, as well as researching, collecting, restoring, and creating printings. Over the past 37 years, he has been collecting and preserving ancient carvings, dedicating his craft to his descendants. He has accumulated more than 800 woodblocks up until now, including new collectibles, restorations and creations, incorporating nearly 200 ancient woodblocks.

Among his collection of ancient carvings include single plates, such as: Herd of pigs, Mother Chicken and baby chickens, Baby hugging, and Old farmer, as well as carved sets, such as Thạch Sanh, Tống Trân - Cúc Hoa, Pine-daisies-Small bamboo-apricot flowers, Kiều, Carp looks at the moon, with an average size of 26 x 37cm to 90 x 140cm. The woodblocks are old and have worn over time, but are still very clear with smooth, lines.

Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam once said: "In the village, many families have used ancient carvings to make doors for chicken coops and pigsties, boards for three wheeled carts, and even thrown them around in spite of the rain"[5]. With his love for his job and pity for his lost ancestral career, he and his children, have collected other discarded woodblocks, in addition to holding onto their own ancient woodblocks.

Despite many other families in the village quitting their traditional livelihoods and pursuing other careers, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam remains determined to invest in developing the craft of printing and continue to produce printings based on traditional folk topics and new models that meet current market demand, such as printing paper calendars and souvenir publications on different topics. In addition, his family also sells carved versions to visitors, who can take them home and make their own printings. His family has an art gallery called the "Vietnamese Show Room" at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology.

Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam died of poor health in 2016. His fortune was passed on to his eldest son, Nguyễn Hữu Hoa, to continue the family business.

Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam is a member of the Vietnam Folk Arts Association and United Nations Education and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) Association, and was a member of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Bắc Ninh province for many terms, in addition to being awarded the "Golden Hand" by the Indochina Fine Arts Program-Vietnam Cooperative Union-Vietnam Fine Arts Association. In 2000, he was awarded a medal by the Ministry of Culture and Information for the preservation of cultural heritage. In 2007, the Central Association of Vietnam Craft Villages awarded him the title "Artisan of craft villages", while in 2012, the People's Committee of Bắc Ninh province awarded him the title "Artisan of Bắc Ninh Province". In 2016, he was the only craftsman in the field of handicrafts from Bắc Ninh province that was honored as a "Meritorious Artisan". He was also awarded the Second-class Resistance Medal and many Certificates of Merit from central agencies and Bắc Ninh province.

- The practitioners in the family:

+ Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam's wife, Mrs. Ha Thi Ngam, born in 1930, has already passed away. During her lifetime, she was a good partner of her husband, and engaged in printing for decades, in addition to teaching and transferring the printings craft to her children and grandchildren with her husband.

Nguyễn Hữu Sam and his wife, Ha Thi Ngam, had five children:

+ Family of the eldest son Nguyễn Hữu Hoa:

Mr. Nguyễn Hữu Hoa, born in 1958, was a staff member of the Bắc Ninh Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. He was taught woodblock printing by his father, which along with his eagerness to learn has enabled him to master the knowledge and skills required to run the printing business, and is able assist at different stages of the printing production process as required.

Mr. Hoa's wife, Ms. Nguyễn Thị Oanh, was born in 1960 into a family from the village who had worked in printing in the past. Upon becoming Nguyễn Hữu Hoa’s bride, she also became the main helper of Mr. Sam in producing and selling printings. Guided by her father-in-law, Mrs. Oanh has mastered all stages of the Đông Hồ folk printing production process. A gifted artisan, Ms. Nguyễn Thị Oanh also developed her skills on her own, and has created printings on many new subjects, such as Dâu Pagoda, Bút Tháp Pagoda, Tranh Market, and Amitabha Buddha Statue, etc., which have been submitted to in many national and international printing exhibitions, winning a number of awards. These awards include: most popular product award at the National Fair of the Red River Delta; A Prize given by the Rural  Today Newspaper; and the second Gold Prize at the Bắc Ninh Festival. Mrs. Nguyễn Thị Oanh is a member of Viet Nam Association of Craft Villages, and was awarded the title of Artisan of Artisans by the Vietnam Association of Craft Villagers, in addition to Certificate of Merits at all levels from central to local.

Mr. Hoa's son, Nguyễn Hữu Tao, born in 1982, works at a trading company in Bắc Ninh. On his days off, he returns home to help his family make  woodblock carvings. When he has the opportunity, Mr. Tao also participates in drawing and printing Đông Hồ folk printings at the Vietnamese House at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology.

Nguyễn Hữu Tao’s wife, Lý Thị Thương, born in 1992, also assists in the printing process directly selling printings and communicating with tourists.

Mr. Hoa's daughter, Nguyễn Hoàng Lan, born in 1988, works at Vietcombank, but always helps her family out with printing during her holidays.

In 2008, Nguyễn Hữu Hoa's family inherited all the business capital of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam, who left it to his son in order for him to carry on promoting the family's traditional achievements.

+ Second son's family

Mr. Nguyễn Hữu Quả, born in 1963, is the son that Mr. Sam trusts the most because he is gifted, qualified to work, and loves the job, thereby, possessing all the qualities required to succeed in the  profession. Mr. Quả has been learning his father's printing craft since childhood. He graduated  from university with a finance degree, but decided to pursue a career in printing at his father’s advice. His enthusiasm for his job resulted in him seeking out a teacher to learn Chinese characters off in order to understand the meaning of the printings. Three times he has reached the final of the Vietnam Handicraft Products Competition and won all the awards. He is deeply concerned about the risk of the craft disappearing from his village and determined for his family to continue the profession. He has expressed his love for Đông Hồ printing and vowed to devote his life to them.

Mr. Sam passed on to his second son all his knowledge and skills of his craft, as well as precious drawings and prints. Mr. Quả can complete tasks at all stages of the printing process from drawing samples, carving blocks, printing pictures, and tinting.  He is very talented and diligent, but also very virtuous and humble.

At present, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả owns approximately 1,000 woodblocks of all different kinds, including: 600 copies handed down by their father; 50 ancient woodblocks that are hundreds of years old; 12 sets of Tứ Bình printings; 25 sets of letter printings; more than 100 new sets of woodblocks; and and hundreds of single woodblocks, such as Riding a buffalo with a flute, A coconut, Graduates come home to be honored, and A flock of pigs, etc.

The main human resources in the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả include Nguyễn Thị Dung (Mr. Quả’s wife), Nguyễn Hữu Dao (Mr. Quả’s son), and Nguyễn Thu Trang (Mr. Đạo’s wife), with Mr. Quả’s  daughters and grandchildren also helping out. Since 1992, after getting married, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả has separated into an independent household in producing Đông Hồ folk printings in the village.

+ Family of the third child

Ms. Nguyễn Thị Đào, born in 1965, previously participated in printing cooperatives with her father, and possesses knowledge and skills about traditional family printing.

She has two children. The oldest, Nguyễn Hữu Sơn, was born in 1989, and the second child, Nguyễn Hữu Phong, was born in 1991. The two children are both still at school, but can help their family with printing if needed.

+ Family of the fourth child:

Ms. Nguyễn Thị Liễu, born in 1967, has  three children with her husband: Nguyễn Thị Hiên, born in 1990; Nguyễn Thị Tâm, born in 1992; and Nguyễn Nhân Long, born in 1996. All three children are knowledgeable about printing and can perform tasks at  simple stages of the production process.

+ Family of the fifth child:

Mr. Nguyễn Hữu Chanh, born in 1970, specializes in making materials for printing from buying dó paper, scallop shells, to covering the scallop shell paste on the dó paper, etc.

Mr. Chanh's wife, Mrs. Nguyễn Thị Lợi, was born in 1972 and is also involved in the printing process.

Mr. Chanh and Mrs. Lợi have three children: Nguyễn Thị Cúc, born in 1994, Nguyễn Hữu Khanh, born in 1997, and Nguyễn Hữu Duẩn, born in 2003. The three children go to school, but assist with printing and helping out with other jobs related to making pictures for their family when they are at home.

4.1.3. Artisan family of Trần Nhật Tấn

Artisan Trần Nhật Tấn was born in 1938 in Đông Hồ village. Coming from a Confucian lineage, Trần Nhật Tấn learned Chinese characters from his father and how to make printings at home. With his innate talent and willingness to learn, Trần Nhật Tấn became a person with a deep knowledge of and solid skills in carving printings and was considered by his colleagues to be a true folk artisan. During the 1970s and 1980s, he contributed to the promotion of the Đông Hồ printing heritage through his many works and articles in Bắc Ninh and the central provinces. He directly composed several modern themes in the Eastern folk printing style, such as: Spring in the highlands; Uncle Ho and his homeland’s children did thousands of good deeds; The spring rice; Traditional job; Arresting the enemy alive; Village festival; and King Quảng Trung.

Artisan Trần Nhật Tấn is a member of the Vietnam Folk Arts Association and, in 2000, was awarded a Medal by the Ministry of Culture and Information for the cause of preserving cultural heritage. He died in 2008. Printings Trần Nhật Tấn passed on to his family include: three sets of woodblock printings (Tứ Quý, Tứ Bình and Tố Nữ) with 44 woodblocks; and 63 sets of woodblocks with hundreds of stroke woodblocks and colored woodblocks.

Artisan Trần Nhật Tấn has three sons and one daughter, however, none of his three sons have an heir to the family. Only his daughter, Trần Thị Tố Tâm (born in 1974), followed her father's career, along with her eldest son, Trần Nhật Sở, who also remains devoted to printing. Trần Nhật Tấn’s three sons, son-in-law and grandson specialize in making votive objects instead.

In 1992, Ms. Trần Thị Tố Tâm started a family with Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Tâm, the son of artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế. After realizing that no member of the family was dedicated to the preservation and promotion of folk printing, artisan, Trần Nhật Tấn, handed over his entire "warehouse" of woodblock printings to his daughter and son-in-law, as he wishes to contribute to safeguarding the noble printing profession of Đông Hồ village and of his family’s ancestors.

5. The birth and development of Đông Hồ folk printings:

Most researchers agreed that Đông Hồ folk printings first appeared around the sixteenth or seventeen centuries, with the, the craft dating back to the early Le dynasty. 

In relation to the origin of Đông Hồ folk printings, artisan Trần Nhật Tân noted that Đông Hồ had a tradition of fondness for learning.  The Confucian artisans seriously considered writing on the printings at the beginning of the year with a few lines about flowers, leaves, and birds, and so on in order to make the picture more vivid. According to artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế: “In Đông Hồ village, remnants of stone steles were found not far from the Đuống river bank near the foundation of the ancient pagoda dating back to the Mạc dynasty in the sixteenth century. The stele that was carved in 1680 depicted two rats pounding rice in the middle of the front part, the rim of the moon. These are familiar animals that Đông Hồ artisans have displayed on many printings, partly confirming the existence and relationship of printing with the Buddhist temple”[6].

Thus, the Đông Hồ printing profession has a long history, with the tradition dating back more than four hundred years. Despite experiencing many historical and social changes, generations of craftsmen from Đông Hồ village have tried their best to preserve, inherit, safeguard, and transmit the precious cultural heritage to each new generation.

II. Form of expression and process of heritage practice

1. Forms of expression:

According to artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam, Đông Hồ folk printings have four main types: traditional hand-painted printings (prints with ink and water-color printings); Printed and painted printings; Woodblock prints; and Wood carvings, of which the most common and popular are black and white printings and color printings printed with woodblocks. These types of printings are still being produced by the families making printings, and are specialties of the famous Đông Hồ folk printings that are still being promoted. In relation to the techniques employed in making woodblock printings, the Đông Hồ printings are characteristically hand-painted woodblock printings. 

In terms of expression, Đông Hồ folk printings focus on reflecting five main topics: Congratulation printings; historical printings; narrative /story printings; religious printings; and daily life printings

2. Printing process:

- Composition of printings:

The first stage of the printing process is to draw a printing as a pattern, which is the most important, but also difficult stage in the process of making printings.

This stage requires artisans to possess genuine artistic aptitude. Creating a pattern, together with carving the printing woodblocks, are the two most difficult stages of the printing process, and few people are skillful in both tasks. A very small number of people can create samples. They are usually best artisans in the village. The best artisans in the village born after the August Revolution in 1945 are always remembered gratefully by the villagers, and include: Nguyễn Thế Thức, Nguyễn Thế Giác (Giác nhất), Nguyễn Thế Lãm (Giác nhì), Vương Chí Long, and Vương Chí Hồ, etc.

To create a picture, artists spend months searching for meaning, content, themes, and forms of expression. Topics depicted are generally close and familiar images, such as a pig herd, chicken flock, buffalo, duck, and cat, etc. For printings depicting or telling a story, such as the Story of Kiều, Thạch Sanh, and Nhị Độ Mai, etc., artisans must go through the process of researching, contemplating and deciding which episode to choose, and which scene in order to express both profound meaning and artistic value.

In many cases, the pattern created is not one artist's own creation, but the result of suggestions from other artists and the masses. The comments and suggestions received help the author correct and supplement the sample sheet so it is perfect, before it is transferred to the person who carves the woodblocks. It can be said that modeling is a special artistic creation process of artisans.

Printing tools include brushes, ink and thin Dó paper. Artisans dip their brush in mixed ink and draw patterns on thin paper. The sample paper is then affixed to the front of the board, and the lines brushed onto the back of the paper, so that the carver can carve the picture into the wood.

The tools for creating and carving printings are very precious to people who make printings, and are, thus, always looked after as carefully as treasures in the house.

 - Carving woodblocks:

After the patterns are drawn, artisans bring them to the wood (woodblock) to start the process of carving wooden boards, commonly referred to as woodblocks.

The craftsman responsible for the wood carving must be a person with good carving techniques. Prior to the August Revolution, skilled woodblock artists in Đông Hồ village were famous and included Nguyễn Đăng Tụy, Nguyễn Đăng Mưu, Nguyễn Thế Bân, and Hà Vãn Tư.

The printing woodblocks are used for a long time, so the painter must choose wood that is good and durable with stable lines. Printed boards are divided into two types: line printing woodblocks and color printing woodblocks.

Line printing woodblocks are used to print the outline of the picture. Each picture only needs one printed board. After the pattern is created and etched, it is a complete pattern woodblock, which are usually made of gold apple wood. This multi-dimensional wood that does not attract worms, and has its flexible, smooth and durable properties, is good for carving sophisticated, small and durable lines. The boards are cut into planks of a certain thickness and left to dry for one or two years, before being carved to prevent the boards from bending and warping.

Colored printing woodblocks are used to print the different colors of the picture. Only one color is printed at a time. So, the number of colors in the printing will be equal to the number of printing woodblocks used to produce it. These woodblocks are carved in according to each color of the picture (i.e., blue, red, yellow). The color printing woodblocks are used to directly print on mop disk shell paper through various stages and prints to produce complete pictures. 

The woodblocks become household treasures of printing families, and valuable assets that are passed down to the next generations. It is a cultural and social custom that expresses the identity of the village community.

 - Tools for carving planks:            

The main tools used to carve printing woodblocks are chisel points, made of hard steel, and knocking sticks, which are used to hit the chisel (different from the production of Hang Trong printings where a carving knife is used).

Each set of carving chisels includes about 40 pieces, divided into four categories/groups:

In addition to the chisel and gauges, a carving knife with a point beveled in one side is also used.

- Carving technique:            

In addition to choosing good wood, the talent of carvers plays a decisive role in producing quality woodblocks. When carving the woodblocks, the carver holds the chisel in his left hand and places its blade on the edge of the drawing line, with his right hand holding the knocking stick against the rolling handle. For straight lines, a straight blade chisel is employed, while for curved lines, a curved blade chisel is used. So, the chisel chosen depends on the line, and whether it is more or less curved. The different types of chisels allow artisans to create many different small and large carvings, which are strong, but still delicate and soulful.

This method makes the carvings on the board large, deep and straight side. This is different from Hàng Trống printings, whereby the carvings are made with a sharp knife, with the workers putting the tip slightly inclined, so that the carvings on the plank are generally flat, trimmed and smaller than Đông Hồ printings. After creating the engraving board, the craftsman takes out a fine sandpaper to ensure a smooth surface before testing it for printing quality. Each woodblock is used to print thousands of copies, with the quality remaining good over a long period of time, due to the durability of the wood.

According to artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả, the woodblocks printing pictures are very important, the woodblocks for black and white printing are simple, but for color printing, the lines must be correct in order to create souls for very sophisticated printings.

3. Printing

- Printing materials

+ Printing papers: paper used for printing is dó paper covered with a layer of mop disk shell powder. Dó paper is made from dó bark collected from the forest.  The advantages of the paper are that it is light, thin, soft, color absorbent, long lasting, and resistant to bacteria and termites. Dó paper comes in sheets 70cm long and 25cm wide, which people can then split into different sized pieces.  

Dó paper is covered with powder made from mop disk shells. These days, artisans buy the shells from Quang Yen district, Quang Ninh province.  Shells of iridescent colors are first cleaned, crushed and powdered. The powder is then mixed with glutinous rice flour, tapioca or wheat flour, before being stirred at a boil into a paste. Cooking scallops requires experience and skill to ensure that they are not under or overdone. The mixture is finally used to cover the dó paper.

Previously, people from Đông Hồ unable to produce it themselves had to buy dó paper in Đống Cao (Yên Phong district, Bắc Ninh province), Bưởi (Hanoi), and Dương Ổ (Bắc Ninh city).  Prior to sale at these markets, Dó paper would be purchased by craftsman of Đạo Tú village (Thuận Thành, Bắc Ninh) or Trương Xá village (Thuận Thành, Bắc Ninh), who would apply  a layer of mother of pearl before selling the paper to Hanoi traders. They would then cover the paper with a layer of varnish prior to its sale to the Đông Hồ artisans.

 In order to make the background of the printing paper more vivid, in addition to white, artists are often creative and cover the paper with a layer of red or yellow to red orange or lemon color, in addition to white. Those are the three main background colors of Đông Hồ printings.

+ Printing colors and coloring methods: The colors used to print Đông Hồ pictures are medicinal colors; that is, colors made from natural materials and herbs, and processed using manual techniques. 

Previously, Đông Hồ printings comprised of only four basic colors: black (bamboo leaf ash), green (indigo leaf), yellow (Japanese Pagoda tree, or gardenia), and red [a type of red rock (iron oxide)]. There was little mixing of colors and the number of colors in the final picture corresponded to the number of woodblocks used.

Later, however, artisans began mixing more colors; for example: reds included cashew red, verdant red, cinnamon red, lotus red, and peach red;  blues included blue, cyan and celadon green; and browns included brown earth and light brown, etc.

Each color is created from a technical process incorporating very rudimentary methods:

Black is made from bamboo leaves. The leaves must be newly fallen leaves that are still yellow when burned. Once burned, water is sprinkled on the leaves, and the bamboo ash is left to soak for a few years. The longer the ash is soaked in water, the darker it becomes in color.  Black bamboo leaves are used to print lines, the border between the color plates, making printings look strong and healthy.

Indigo blue is obtained from indigo leaves, soaked until rotten and beaten to a froth, at which point in time the indigo foam floating on top of the water is carefully removed, and added to resin when it is time to print. Indigo blue is porous, light, deep, and can be mixed with yellow to obtain the color old green and young green. 

 Yellow is made from the flowers of the Japanese pagoda tree or fruit of gardenia. To extract the yellow color, artisans must heat the flowers on the fire, adding sour leaves or acidic alum to produce a beautiful, iridescent yellow to print pictures with. The yellow color in Đông Hồ folk printings adds to the nobility of many kinds of compliments and scenes.

Red wine color is made from caesalpinia sappan.  It is extracted from a curved trunk of the tree, which the Đông Hồ people chop up and put in a pot of water that is heated all day and night until the water turns bright or dark red.

Vermilion Red is made from a type of red rock (iron oxide), finely ground into powder for use in printing and covering the surface of the paper.

White is taken from a scallop shell, is finely grated into a powder and used as the white color in printings.

The brown color is obtained from colored rocks.

The above colors are mixed with glutinous rice paste to make a very sticky solid color, which is easily absorbed by paper and can withstand light, resulting in less fading.

4. Printing tools

After the mop disk shell paper and printing colors have been acquired, the following tools are used to produce printings:

- Printing woodblocks (as described in the carving section): Printing woodblocks are prepared in advance according to the patterns created. They are small sized boards, lightweight and convenient to print with.          

- Cover: The "cover" is a rectangular wooden frame 60cm long and 40cm wide. The cover is stuffed with dried lygodium fern, which is a type of tree that absorbs water, but does not rot. On the surface of the lygodium fern lies a layer of dried banana leaf over which a cover of cloth is stretched before the color is printed on it. Each color required one cover, however, one cover can be used for all colors provided that the piece of cloth stretched over the cover is replaced after each color is printed.          

- Pine leaf broom: Also known as a "thét", this type of broom is made from pine leaves, with a head 15-20cm in width. The thét is dipped into color pots and then swept over the surface of the board; not too thick and not too thin, just enough for the woodblocks to absorb enough colors.

- Loofah fibers: Loofah fibers are available in most Vietnamese villages. If not, artisans replace them with sandpaper, big brushes or sponge pads.          

After the materials and tools are prepared, the craftsman proceeds to print the picture.

5. The process of printing pictures

Đông Hồ printings are printed using the method of up down woodblocks, whereby printing woodblocks are pressed down on the color cover, so that the color is evenly absorbed into the woodblock before it is used to print on the mop disk shell paper, following which loofah fibers are rubbed on the back of the paper to ensure that the color and lines are printed evenly. After each color is printed, printings are dried under the sun before the next color is printed. Printings must be dried face-down, however, to avoid the sun ruining the color of the picture.

In a multicolored picture, people often print in the following order:

1. The first is red;

2. The second is blue;

3. Next is yellow, then other colors like white and brown;

4. Finally, black in printed.

Each person in the production line usually prints only one color, so there are many people involved in printing one complete picture. For the printed colors to match, each printed board has two marking pins at its edge. When printing, these two pins will leave a small dot on the picture. This method ensures that the printing of alternating colors do not overlap the array of pre-printed colors[7].

- Line printing

After printing the color plates, the artisan prints with a black line woodblock to print a border around the color plates. Đông Hồ people call them the cutting lines. Printing the cutting lines is the final stage of the folk printing production process.  This is the most difficult job as the lines must be uniform, not too bold and not too light. The printing color must be full, meaning that the array of colors is uniform, and not missing or defective. 

 The use of different types of printing woodblocks requires skills in press printing, but at the same time the worker must have love for the job and creativity for them to be successful

In addition to multicolored printings, Đông Hồ printings are also printed in black and white, also known as water-color printings. This type of printing is similar to that of Hang Trong printings. In this category,, artisans often use color printing techniques, such as using the brush to color with boldness and brightness to  highlight or obscure color paste or line of a picture.

6. Dry printings

After each color is printed, the picture is left to dry before another color is printed. After the final color is printed, the printing is dried in a dry place indoors, regardless of whether it is sunny or raining outside, to prevent mold. Previously, good artisans in Đông Hồ could take care of themselves and complete the tasks at all stages of the production process from drawing to carving to printing. Later, due to the development of the profession, the three stages were separated, with each stage competed by a person with highly specialized skills in the stages specific tasks.

7. Physical and mental products created during the practice:

Current products of Đông Hồ folk printing fall into four main categories:

- Traditional hand-painted printings

- Printed and painted pictures;           

- Woodblock printings; and          

- Wood carving printings.           

The most common and popular ones are black and white printings and color printings printed with woodblocks.

These types of printings are maintained by families making printings. They are specialties of the famous Đông Hồ folk printings that are still being promoted.

III. Values of Đông Hồ folk printings

1. Ideological values

Đông Hồ folk printings depict everything from the intimacy and simplicity of people's lives to noble themes in the sacred printings. Nom stories, such as Kiều stories and Nhị Độ Mai stories, are also used as subjects in printings. Popular printing subjects, such as: Toad, mouse, chicken flock, coconut picking, jealousy, drumming, and wrestling, accompany other topics, such as Phú quý, Vinh hoa, and tổ nữ, etc. Historical subjects are also covered by folk printings, such as Ladies Trưng Trắc, riding elephants in battle, and Đinh Bộ Lĩnh raised a flag. In more modern times, many printings imbue the breath of new life, such as: Viet Nam’s independence, Public education, Getting rid of American enemies, Uncle Hồ to visit the village, etc.

The contents of Đông Hồ folk printings are very diverse and rich. Each picture has many profound human meanings, expressing multi-angles of human life, the wishes of the people, from ordinary and simple desires to noble and sacred things. Based on the classification of printings, four typical values ​​of the ideological content of Đông Hồ folk printings are as follows:

a. Đông Hồ printing depict the dreams and aspirations of workers, bringing compliments:

For generations, Vietnamese people have traditionally hung folk printings for the Tết Lunar New Year holiday, long-standing and good customs practiced every spring. This custom has been reflected very vividly through poetry and literature. People hang new printings all over the house, on the one hand to decorate the house "to send the former newcomer", and on the other hand to wish a successful new year, with good luck, a good harvest, and prosperous and happy life.

b. Đông Hồ printing educates the studious tradition and "respectful master" of the Vietnamese people

The traditions of studiousness and respectful master have long existed in the history of the nation, and Đông Hồ folk printings have vividly reflected this content. For example, in the printing of Lý ngư vọng nguyệt (Carp looking at the moon), two carp face each other, while looking at the moon. This printing reminds us of the legend, Cá chép vượt vũ môn (Carp overcoming all obstacles), whose main message is to encourage students to study hard and pass on the legend. The printing also aims to send the message to people that if they are patient, hard-working and persistent, then one day they will achieve success.

Another printing with many critical and encouraging learning implications is the Thầy đồ cóc (Toad teacher). This printing is metaphorical, encouraging children to study hard within a crowded school environment. The printing is aimed at education. Parents want their children to learn more, so that they can become good people. In addition, the printing shows the respect students have for their teachers. Other printings, such as Đám cưới chuột (Mouse Wedding), Rước ông nghè vinh quy bái tổ (Procession of the graduate to worship ancestor), and Mục đồng đọc sách (Pastor reads a book), also express strong encouragement.

c. Đông Hồ printings reflect the history of defending the country and praising national heroes:

Đông Hồ printings reflect the process of building and defending the country, resilient and durable throughout history. Đông Hồ printings depict the history of the nation vividly and clearly. These include printings that praise the history of the early AD period, such as Bà Triệu rides an elephant, Two Mrs. Trưng, King Đinh Tiên Hoàng, Ngô Quyền fought against enemy, General Trần Hưng Đạo, Capture enemy, and Peace, etc.

d. Đông Hồ printings praise natural beauty, and enhances oriental morality

Printings firstly praise natural beauty. Typical is the picture sets Tứ bình (four pictures) is both romantic and artistic. In relation to weather, there are four seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, which correspond to four types of flowers: plum flower, orchid, daisy, and small bamboo.  The words on the picture are spring comes, summer passes, autumn begins, winter arrives. Birds, such as giant barons, nightingales, hemorrhoids, cranes, and peacocks, also feature as they are compatible with the natural scenes.

d. Đông Hồ folk printings criticize and destroy bad habits through profound educational impacts

Đông Hồ folk printings frequently depict community-based cultural activities in the old countryside particularly village festivals. Village scenery is depicted in the printings, such as Đánh đu (Swing), Đánh vật (Wrestling), Rước trống (Procession of the Drum), Múa rồng (Dragon Dance), and Hội làng (Village Festival), which evoke in people a sense of familiarity, closeness and intimacy in the joyful atmosphere of festivals, summer, holidays, and traditional games.

In addition, Đông Hồ folk printings successfully criticize and lash out at the feudal ruling class due to their bad habits. Two typical printings, Thầy đồ cóc (The Toad Teacher) and Đám cưới chuột (The Mouse Wedding), were ingeniously produced by folk artisans.

2. The artistic values ​​of Đông Hồ folk printings:

Layout: Đông Hồ folk printings are laid out, so the arrangement of motifs in the printing is tight and reasonable[8].  Đông Hồ printings represent the art of depicting space in a conventional and symbolic manner. Đông Hồ printings do not represent large and small images according to the law of distance - near / near - far as in the West, but rather depend on the inspiration of the composition and the requirements, contexts and content of the artisan.

Lines: The art of making Đông Hồ printings is depicted by the lines that are always printed at the end of the production process with line printing woodblocks. According to the way they are shaped, the lines create the soul of the printing. The lines are also a highly decorative element of printings. Therefore, the line is very important from a visual standpoint creating a border between the colors and the background. The lines in Đông Hồ printings tend to be simple, strong, and stylized and decorated, rather than realistic. This is because typical characteristics of Đông Hồ printings are folklore and descriptive spatial representation. Due to the limited space, the characters tend also to be conventional in structure and proportion, and need not be need not be consistent with their dimensions in real life. The focus is on their action, posture, and spirit, so the characters are both vivid and show their charisma.

Colors: Traditional colors, especially white and black, or black lines, as well as yellow and red, give a printing its value. To make a folk printing, Đông Hồ artisans must cleverly create harmonious and balanced colors, as well as clear, large, strong, and bold lines. They are flat, non-evoking patches of light like in other modern printings. On the colored background of a Đông Hồ printing, which is also the color of the printing paper (yellow, white or red), the artisan prints the colors of the picture and the final black lines to form a complete picture. 

Each color is printed using a separate woodblock, which when printed on the mop disk shell background enables the color to create its own taste, bright, rustic and rich in decoration. The distribution of colors, along with the way the lines are expressed, harmonizes the two elements of the printing - the colors and the lines. In addition to the background and black lines, most Đông Hồ printings feature three to four more colors, although some only have two more colors. The mop disk shell background contains joyful and vibrant colors and helps make the colors in Đông Hồ printings both loving and expressing the soul of the nation. 

IV. Current situation and changes to the Đông Hồ folk printing profession

1. Current situation of the Đông Hồ folk printing craft

1.1. Characteristics of the craft, artisans and practitioners

The basic characteristic of workers in traditional craft villages is manual labor, which combines manual labor with creativity and sophisticated skills. Folk printing production requires a type of labor with specific characteristics both physical and artistic.

In the Đông Hồ folk printing profession, next-generation artisans inherit the experiences of his father first, and at the same time learn how to improve the art of making printings to make the products more diverse, beautiful and able to meet the needs of customers in modern society.

The folk printing production process incorporates stages for which the labor of many family members both men and women, can be mobilized. There are also stages, however where only skilled artisans can complete the tasks, such as creating samples, carving printing woodblocks, and mixing colors.

From 2008 up until now, only about ten people have directly worked on printings for artisan Nguyen Dang Che at the Đông Hồ Folk Printing Cultural Exchange Center. Most of them are descendants of artisans.  Other workers include three laborers, two people from paper producing villages, and two wood carving workers from another commune, who get paid wages by product or for a day’s work that are relatively high in comparison to the current average value of labor. The remaining workers are descendants of artisans who are paid on a monthly or seasonal basis.

1.2. Vocational training:

In traditional craft villages in general, and Đông Hồ folk printing village in particular, the main method of vocational training is to transfer vocational skills through actual labor or learning by doing. In this way, the worker learns and works at the same time, and is taught by highly skilled artisans until he becomes a professional and able to make the products himself.

Printing requires the special ability to be both artistically talented, as well as being consistently hard working and having perseverance. The career process is also one of creativity and continuous learning, especially creativity, aptitude and agility to adapt with the times. The artisans said that it was difficult to learn the art of printing, but it was more difficult to continue and maintain this profession. This is not only through enthusiasm, but also love for the job and willingness to continue trying and improving at every stage of the process.

The families of artisan Nguyen Dang Che and artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam both taught their profession directly to their children during vocational training. Those who went to school, went on to work as civil servants and do not follow their family’s traditional career path, but still all know how to  and contribute at a certain stages of the production process, and do so according to their ability and spare time. I there are people from outside the family who need an apprenticeship, the artists are also happy to pass on their skills. 

2. Variations present in present day Đông Hồ folk printings

2.1. Change in material and art form

The variations in Đông Hồ folk printings are now being evaluated by researchers and artists who note that “Đông Hồ printings printed at the present time often do not have the same deep colors as ancient printings, the reason being that people mix white on scanned paper to reduce the amount of scallop shell powder which causes the paper to lose its iridescence and become "normal". The color used is also more industrial, and the new woodblock printings are not as delicate as the older versions.

When surveyed, most domestic tourists said that, although the artisans still produce traditional printings, they are different from printings of the past. At present, the density of colors and the printing paper used are the same, but perhaps due to the secrets and skills of the profession not being properly transmitted, skills in color mixing, along with the general performance of producers, is more limited.

2.2. Changes and expansion to the content depicted:

In relation to the content of Đông Hồ folk printings produced today, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả affirmed that the content reflected in Đông Hồ printings has had a certain change, but not by much, with the change dependent on the creative ideas presented in each picture. For example, in Tứ Bình and Tứ Quý printings, artisans basically respect the traditional stereotypes, and only changed and modified some decorative motifs to avoid frills and evoke a sense of serenity for contemporary tastes.

Artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế transforms woodblock printings (in the negative printing way) into wooded carved picture (positive ones) with two colors - black and white. The artisan has said that in more recent years customers (especially foreigners) prefer this type of wooden carved picture.

3. Current status and the risks to the Đong Hồ printing craft

3.1. Current status of the Đông Hồ printing craft

In Vietnamese history, Đông Hồ village is known as a trade village with two traditional occupations, namely making votive offerings and producing printings. Over the passage of time, these two occupations have experienced their ups and downs, with each complimenting the other and not excluding it. In the past, the craft of making printings was somewhat more prominent and was what the craft village had a reputation for doing.

By the late 1980s, the country "opened" up to the world, the market economy developed, and people were free to practice their beliefs and restore spiritual relics in most villages. Since then, the profession of making votive offerings has been restored in Đông Hồ village, and the activities surrounding this profession have become increasingly bustling and developing. In contrast, sales of Đông Hồ folk printings during the same period declined. Many families, who previously practiced printing, adapted to the new market conditions, putting aside their printing jobs, and making votive offerings to earn money to support their  families. A few families continue to make both printings and votive offerings at the same time.

Since 1975, folk printing in the village has been less evaluated by people because the consumption of printings has been lower. Printing activities have generally declined, which has subsequently resulted in reductions in the number of prototypes for printing, people who know how to engrave printings, materials used to mate colors to print pictures, and number of people directly making printings, as shown in the table above. According to the artist Nguyen Dang Che, in 1975, 150 households (out of 180) in Đông Hồ village were directly engaged in the production of printings, and  than 30 families made votive goods. By 1990, the number of households directly involved in printing had been reduced to 60,  with 30 households switching to make votive objects. By the early 2000s, only three families were still making printings, namely Nguyễn Đăng Chế, Nguyễn Hữu Sam and Trần Nhật Tấn, and by 2008, only the families of artisans Nguyễn Đăng Chế and Nguyễn Hữu Sam remained dedicated and loyal to the Đông Hồ printing profession.

Currently, two families, incorporating three households, have a Đông Hồ folk printing workshop at their home, where they regularly produce printings for sale and filling orders. The number of orders, however, is not large or continuous, and the limited sale of products places the future of the traditional folk printing craft at risk.

  Four artisans across the three households currently play the role of master craftsmen, chiefly responsible for completing important stages and playing a decisive role in the family's printing process, such as creating new, multi-themed products, directly producing printings and supervising the quality of printing. These four artisans are also the main resource for transmitting the craft to other family members and to outsiders interested in the heritage.

Although the number of people across four generations in the two lineages is 45, only about 30 of them can make printings. Among them, 13 members specialize in printing, with the rest considering printing making as a secondary job, taking part in printing production when they have free time. The children of the 4th generation are still young and at high school. The number of professional people is too small for the sustainable development of Đông Hồ folk printing craft.

Printing does not guarantee the livelihood of the families involved, thereby, directly affecting the viability of the craft over the long term.

3.2. The risks to the Đông Hồ folk printing craft

Despite government's efforts in implementing supporting policies, providing finance, renting land for the construction of printing workshops, and enhancing awareness on the printing craft and supporting the development of the printing lineages including the two Nguyễn Đăng Chế, Nguyễn Hữu Sam in  the Đông Khê village community, the Đông Hồ printing craft still faces ever-present risks and needs urgent safeguarding. These risks include: very limited product consumption; villagers changing their vocations; very limited human resources; declining stocks of raw materials; and lack of facilities for preserving woodblocks and printings.

- Limited consumption of products: The practices of buying printings for the Mid-Autumn Festival, hanging printings in family worship spaces, and Tết holiday are in decline due to the changing tastes of the people in the context of modern life. Printings are no longer available for sale at the printing market at the Communal House in Đông Hồ village, or other traditional markets. Moreover, people are no longer buying and/or replacing printings on an annual basis as in the past, but rather printings are now framed and kept indoors for a long time.

The quality of Đông Hồ printings has also declined due to a scarcity of  natural materials, which has made them more expensive, resulting in them being replaced by more easy-to-find materials, such as indigo blue, with the addition of other soft-bodied leaves. Printings are also no longer as tough and durable as they used to be due to the introduction of machines during the manufacturing process. Stocks of mop disk shells are becoming exhausted, so it is now covered thinner on the printing paper. The color are not as good as in the past that renders Đông Hồ printings less brilliant than when made with the colors of medicine, the luster and porosity of scallop shells, and making the printings not as delicate as before, reducing people’s interested in them. Although artisans have tried to improve products, such as printing Đông Hồ designs on calendars, invitations, picture books, and bamboo blinds, etc., the demand for Đông Hồ products is still very limited.

- Vocational change: During the period of Renovation, the market economy developed, and people were free to practice their religious beliefs. The profession of making votive offerings for use in rituals was restored, and the increasing demand for this item attracted large numbers of households, who switched to making votive objects and stopped making printings. In Dong Khe village, 95% of households current make votive offering products all year round, resulting in a reduction in the human resources in craft villages participating in traditional folk printing production.

- Limited human resources: At present, young people in Đông Khê village are not interested in printing, and tend to move to the cities and work for the State or companies. The number of outsiders from Đông Khê villager participating in printing workshops is almost none. Limited human resources can, therefore, be considered as one of the risks seriously affecting the maintenance and development of the printing craft.

- Limited supply of natural materials and plants: Currently, only four households in Đống Cao village, Bắc Ninh city, produce dó paper from materials grown in Bắc Cạn, Bắc Giang, Cao Bằng, Thái Nguyên, Lạng Sơn, Quảng Ninh provinces. The production of colors from red gravel, mop disk shells, flowers and buds of Japanese pagoda tree, or the fruit of gardenia, and indigo and bamboo leaves, requires a lot of labor and technology, but few people undertake this profession. This results in high product costs, which has led some artisans to use poor quality printing and color paper, affecting the quality of printings, as well as the production and consumption of the products.

- Lack of storage facilities: It is custom for families to pass woodblocks down to their descendants, however, a number of printed boards have been damaged due to war, time, fire, flooding, and humidity. Most printed boards collected by artisan families are stored without the use of proper preservation facilities and techniques, therefore, the risk of degradation is very high. The quality of some of the new printed boards is also not as good as the old ones.

V. Role of the government in safeguarding the Craft of Making Folk Woodblock Printings

The governments first significant attempt to safeguard the Đông Hồ folk printing village in Song Hồ commune took place in 1967, when the decision was made to establish the Đông Hồ printing production cooperative. The responsibility was handed to artisan, Nguyễn Hữu Sam, who took charge of operation and management.

The Bắc Ninh provincial Party Committee and provincial People's Committee issued Resolution No. 04-NQ / TU on 25^th May, 1998, on the development of handicraft villages, including the craft of making Đông Hồ folk printings. Two years later, Resolution No. 12-NQ / TU was similarly issued on 3^rd February, 2000, on the construction and development of industrial parks and craft villages in Bắc Ninh province. In line with guidelines set by the Bắc Ninh Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee, the Bắc Ninh Department of Culture and Information (now Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism) was assigned the task of implementing a scientific research project on "Safeguarding intangible cultural heritage of Đông Hồ printing village", with the purpose of investigating, recording, describing, and evaluating the Đông Hồ folk printing village, in order to identify solutions to safeguard and promote its heritage village. The results of the project were recorded in the 140-page booklet Safeguarding the Cultural Heritage of Đông Hồ folk Printing Village by Dr. Trần Đình Luyện, Bắc Ninh Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, published in 2016[9].

In 2010, the Bắc Ninh Provincial People's Committee honored and conferred the title Provincial Artisan on Mr. Nguyễn Hữu Sam and Mr. Nguyễn Đăng Chế, promulgating the Decision to restore and consolidate the Club of Đông Hồ Folk Printing Artisans. In the same year, the local government additionally supported the family of artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế to implement the project on safeguarding and developing the Đông Hồ folk printing line, with an initial budget of over VND 1 billion.

Also in 2010, the Party Committee and Government of Song Ho Commune gained the support of the Bắc Ninh Provincial Party Committee, the Bắc Ninh Provincial People's Committee and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to complete a number of activities, including organizing a survey, assessing the situation, and organizing a scientific conference on Đông Hồ folk printings, with the aim of determining safeguarding measures to assist artisans in maintaining and sustainably developing their craft.

As a result, in 2011, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued a decision to complete an inventory on the Đông Hồ folk printing heritage, involving the participation of artisan and practitioners, and focusing on the themes, patterns and technical skills of the craft. The Vietnam Institute of Culture and Arts (now the Vietnam National Institute of Arts and Culture) completed this work in 2012. Later, the project results were presented in the 270-page booklet entitled Cultural Heritage of Đông Hồ Folk Printings by Professor Từ Thi Loan in 2016.

At the end of 2012, Đông Hồ Folk Printing was officially inscribed on the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism under the domain of traditional handicrafts. Then, in March 2013, the Vietnamese Government officially allowed the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Bắc Ninh Provincial People's Committee to coordinate in compiling a file on the craft of making Đông Hồ folk woodblock printing to be submitted to UNESCO to consider its listing on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.

In 2013, Bắc Ninh province provided loans to three artisans from Đông Hồ printing village to a total amount equal to VND 50 million to carve some rare printing woodblocks.

In June 2014, the Bắc Ninh Provincial People's Committee issued Decision No. 660/QD-UBND approving the project on Safeguarding and promotion of the value of Đông Hồ folk printing, Thuận Thành District, 2014 - 2020, and orientation to 2030, with a total budget of nearly VND60 billion from the central budget and other sources. This project represents the most concrete and profound evidence for the awareness and responsibility of the authorities at all levels in Bắc Ninh province in relation to the Đông Hồ folk printing heritage.

Since 2010, Bắc Ninh authorities, especially the cultural management team, have regularly facilitated and provided funding for artisans to display Đông Hồ printings at national and international fairs and exhibitions; thereby, contributing to promoting local heritage and expand its scope from national to international levels.

In implementing the development plan of Đông Hồ folk printing village, in 2017, the leader of Song Hồ commune order ground of19,000m² in area to be cleared for a VND100 billion infrastructure project building a picture market and  exhibition house to display Đông Hồ folk printings.

VI. Efforts to safeguard and promote the value of the craft of making Đông Hồ woodblock printings by the community

Since 2010, the people of Đông Hồ village have been making great efforts in preserving, exploiting and promoting the value of traditional folk printing in the locality, creating both specific changes and forecasting development trends. Faced with the need to protect the survival of this heritage of the nation, the artisan families have been playing a central role, showing their dynamism and efforts in intellect and material resources to find ways to ensure its visibility.

 In relation to strengthening and expanding human resources, the families of artisans Nguyễn Đăng Chế and Nguyễn Hữu Sam have paid significant attention to training and fostering printing skills and technology transfer in recent years for generations and expand the teaching to community members in the case they are in need.

For almost forty years, artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế has been passing on his practical craft skills to his sons, daughters and daughters-in-law, as well as his grandchildren. Up until now, his fifth son Nguyễn Đăng Tâm is the one that has mastered all the required skills, has deep knowledge of the craft and is able to practice all stages of printing. Nearly three dozen human resources from the extended family can complete tasks at different stages of the printing making process. After years working as a lecturer, guiding students in the practice of making Đông Hồ folk printings at Hanoi University of Industrial Fine Arts during the second half of last century, artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế opened a craft training workshop for students from other localities to learn and practice the craft for free. Every year, he also spends a significant amount of time helping thousands of students from schools in the provinces by allowing them to come to experience the printing craft, and exchange and promote his craft to raise awareness about the value of Đông Hồ printing heritage to so many teachers and students.

During his lifetime, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam has passed on his vocational skills to his two sons and daughters, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. His two sons have subsequently created two independent printing producing families, which has helped sustainably develop their professional activities and create a deep professional and social reputation. Nguyễn Hữu Sam’s second son, Nguyễn Hữu Quả, and his daughter-in-law, Nguyễn Thị Oanh, are two skilled artisans, with profound professional knowledge and creativity, and the application necessary to serve the needs of the community., In addition to making printings at home, Nguyễn Thị Oanh spends a lot of time directly teaching techniques for creating folk-style art at the Bắc Ninh School of Art and Culture, and teaching Đông Hồ folk printing at Hanoi University of Fine Arts.

The three artisan families have invested in the construction of production and product display facilities that are attractive enough to welcome domestic and foreign visitors. In 2006, artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế's family invested in the construction of a 120m² private gallery to promote hundreds of printings of different sizes. Over an area of ​​5,000m², Mr. Chế built a spacious hall for printing production, with a small room for making mop disk shell powder and printing colors.

The artisan family of Nguyễn Hữu Hoa built a dwelling 150m² in area to use as their living room and to display family printings, and renovated and upgraded the old house (inherited from artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam) into a place of worship, and a storage of carved woodblocks.

The artisan family of Nguyễn Hữu Quả reserves the 150m² first floor of their three-story family home as a place to receive guests, display products and produce printings, to let visitors experience  the heritage and enable them to buy printings.

The creation of facilities to increase the output of printings produced by artisan family is considered one of the most urgent tasks. For nearly two decades, artisan families have been interested in buying land to build production facilities and/or selling stalls in the big cities to increase sales of their artwork.

In 2008, artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế started renting space in house No. 16, Chân Cầm Street, in the middle of Hanoi’s Old Quarter, to display and sell printings, which has subsequently been handed over to the family of his son, Nguyễn Đăng Dũng, and daughter-in-law, Mai Thị Huyền, to manage. In 2018, he similarly rented a house in which to open a gallery and sell printings in Tam Kỳ City, Quang Nam Province, which his grandchild is in charge of.

Since the beginning of the 21st century, Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam has rented facilities at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi to display and sell products to tourists. Artisan Nguyễn Hữu Quả rents a house at No. 1 Lương Văn Can Street, Hanoi, to promote and sell printings to domestic and foreign tourists.  He also rents a space and runs a a souvenir shop on the premises of the Fine Arts Museum on Nguyễn Thái Học Street, Hanoi.

In recent years, families of artisans have paid attention and invested money for their children and grandchildren to actively attend, exchange experiences and display printings at international fairs in Vietnam, as well as abroad. Artisan Nguyễn Đăng Tâm has twice participated in professional training in Japan, in 2016 and 2017, which helped him expand his relationships and establish focal points for product consumption in the country. The artisan family of Nguyễn Đăng Chế attends most of the big fairs held in regional areas across the country, including the Ho Chi Minh City Fair, fairs in the Central Highlands region, and at the Spring Market in the Red River Delta region, which contributes to the extensive promotion and exchange of products. In 2018, Quang Ninh province "specially" invited the family of artisan Nguyễn Đăng Chế to open a gallery in Ha Long city to serve foreign tourists.

In 2015, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam gave 26 Đông Hồ folk printings as gifts to the Vietnamese Embassy in China to facilitate the promotion of the heritage. In May 2015, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam gave 20 large-sized printings as gifts to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism for sending to the Russian Federation for the exhibition at Viet Nam’s Cultural Days in Russia. In May 2018, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Hoa (the eldest son of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Sam) submitted 169 printings to an international exhibition entitled “The colors of Đông Hồ folk printings” held in the US capital of Washington D.C., and which were bought by patrons of the exhibition. In May 2019, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Hoa sentt 80 printings to display at Vietnamese Cultural Days in Russia, during a visit of the Vietnamese Prime Minister to Russia. In June 2019, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Hoa presented the Vice Chairman of the Bắc Ninh People's Committee 15 large-sized printings for promotion in some European countries. Along with his younger brother, Nguyễn Hữu Quả, artisan Nguyễn Hữu Hoa has also displayed his printings at most of the major spring fairs in urban and regional areas of the country, facilitating awareness raising, and promotion and sale of the product, thereby, bringing in income for the family. Finally, every year in the lead up to the Lunar New Year holiday, the family of artisan Nguyễn Hữu Hoa hires locations in the Temple of Literature in Hanoi to display printings for promotion and sale.

VII. Solutions to protect and promote the values of Đông Hồ folk printings

1. Raising the public's awareness of the value of the heritage

In recent decades, the authorities and cultural managers have actively implemented policies and measures to enhance the education and raise the awareness of officials working for the relevant agencies on the value of Đông Hồ folk printings as a cultural heritage of the nation. In addition to promoting the heritage through the mass media, local authorities have directed and organized extracurricular activities for thousands of students to learn about the artisans' family experience, and listen to the artisan’s talk, to improve their understanding of the local heritage. The task of raising people's awareness of the Đông Hồ folk printing heritage, however, needs to be implemented more deeply and practically amongst general public in Vietnam and abroad.

2. Honor artisans who have the ability to revitalize and develop the craft of making printings

Artisans are those who hold the traditional techniques and are the nucleus of the craft villages, playing a decisive role in the survival of the craft. As a result, in recent years, the authorities of some localities have implemented mechanisms and policies to honor and award those involved in specific cultural sectors of craft villages. According to many artisans in craft villages across the country, however, up until now, the policies and the State's support for folk artisans in general have not been satisfactorily, and appropriate level of attention has not been given. Many demands for craft safeguarding and development of artisans still encounter barriers, increasing the risk of negative impacts on craft activities, and threatening the long-term future of the craft.

3. Expanding product consumption at home and abroad

For the maintenance and development of a trade village, the issue of output, or the consumption of products, is a decisive factor. An important and vital solution to ensure the sustainability of Đông Hồ printing industry is, therefore, to find stable demand for large quantities for printings.

The State should coordinate and assist artisans in relation to trade promotion by helping craft villages sell products and maintain their production levels. Information on the history of development, and cultural values and meanings ​​of printings should be distributed through industry and local websites, newspapers, magazines, and TV shows.

The State should seek guidance from the functional agencies of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in developing a plan of association between cultural activities and fairs of provinces and cities to introduce, display and sell Đông Hồ printings. This would contribute to the promotion of the trade village's, the products they produce for sale, as well as increasing the number of tourists visiting regional areas nationwide. The State already has specific guidelines for cultural and trade representative agencies to actively and closely coordinate with the Đông Hồ printing trade village, in order to introduce the craft through cultural exhibitions and fairs, and travel tours, as well as by connecting the artisans of Đông Hồ village to foreign businesses, with the aim of widening the consumption of craft products.

4. Heritage transmission and education:

The artisans continue to transmit knowledge and improve the skills of their descendants, as well as outsiders, such as Nguyễn Hữu and Nguyễn Đăng. They also promote the education of the Đông Hồ folk printing heritage in schools, organize extracurricular activities, and take students to painting workshops to experience the craft.

5. Inventory, documentation and scientific research:

The Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts, through its Department of Cultural Heritage, continue to update the inventory data in collaboration with the Bắc Ninh province Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the artisans of the Đông Hồ printing craft.

Central researchers collaborate with local folklorist and artisans to continue in-depth research, update information and document the entire Đông Hồ printing process.

 6. Enhancing sources of natural raw materials and plants:

The Bắc Ninh Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism cooperates with the authorities at all levels to develop and implement a project with the aim of exploiting and conserving natural resources, dó paper and colored paper plants. Activities include:

- Assisting artisans in their sustainable exploitation of mop disk shells in brackish water areas along the Quảng Ninh coast.

- Identifying and adopting policies that support families and individuals to produce dó paper in Đống Cao trade village, Bắc Ninh province.

7. Improving the quality of Đông Hồ printings

Due to the hot weather and high humidity, many woodblocks and printings are not well maintained, leading to many of them becoming damaged. It is, therefore, necessary to involve experts who work in object conservation to guide artisans on appropriate techniques and conditions for preserving woodblock prints and printings. Moreover, artisans need financial support and equipment to help them conserve Đông Hồ woodblocks and printings.

CONCLUSION

Đông Hồ folk printing from Bắc Ninh province is one of the three main lines of folk printing in Northern Vietnam, along with Hàng Trống worship printings (Hanoi) and Kim Hoàng red printings (Hoài Đức and Hà Tây districts, now in Hanoi). In the past, Đông Hồ craft village was famous in the Kinh Bắc region for being one of the biggest folk and votive printing production centers in Vietnam. Đông Hồ folk printing has many characteristics of the visual language and is classified in the line of graphic arts, a type of art that was born early in the history of Vietnamese fine arts. For more than 400 years, Đông Hồ printings have left bold imprints, bringing their own nuance to subsistence activities, village culture and craft exchanges. The printing profession has become part of the history of the village, is associated with the village’s name, cultural heritage of Đình tranh (Printing Communal Hall), and the reputation of "Đông Hồ Folk Woodblock Printing Village".

Folk printing making in Đông Hồ village has experienced its ups and downs in line with historical changes going on in the country. It  reached its peak thanks to a large consumer market, and spread across the provinces from the plains to the mountains, from the north to the south. Đông Hồ folk printings feature all the characteristics of a separate line of printings, diverse in genres and subjects, they can be worship printings, congratulatory printings, historical printings, daily printings, satire printings, landscape printings, and narrative printings. Đông Hồ printings elude a rustic and familiar beauty to the pure and simple farmers. They reflect easy-to-understand and close-to-work themes, such as: compliments that reveal the thousand-year-old dreams of people; pray for the protection of their ancestors; praising the tradition "respectful teacher"; promoting humanitarianism; praising the cause of protecting the country and nation; praising the national hero, lashing out, criticizing and satirizing the corruption of the ruling feudal class; praising the country's natural beauty; and wishing for a prosperous and happy life. In addition to their rich content, Đông Hồ printings also regarded as a kind of folk art due to their layout, materials, lines, and folk colors.

The process of making Đông Hồ printings is still very traditional in its characteristics. From raw material preparation to printing techniques employed, the craft strictly follows the traditional process. The outstanding feature of Đông Hồ folk printing is the method of printing pictures using color-printing woodblocks and line woodblocks. Đông Hồ folk printings feature sharp lines and colors, which is achieved by using woodblocks to print face-down like a stamp on paper with a mop disk shell background. Colors used for printing are made from natural products and materials processed by craftsman; black is made from bamboo ash and indigo leaves; yellow is made from Japanese pagoda tree flowers; red is made from red pebbles; and white is made from mop dish shell. The natural color makes the printings soft and porous and does not fade. The iridescent texture makes the colors clear and deep. The contours in Đông Hồ folk printings are also large, bold and simple, but also concise and strong.

Due to various subjective and objective reasons, Đông Hồ folk printing have faced great difficulties in recent decades that are likely to adversely affect the existence of the village craft in the northern delta.

The authorities at all levels and members of the community are making efforts to revive the Đông Hồ printing village through appropriate mechanisms and management. This is of great significance in safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of Kinh Bắc land. It will also contribute to stimulating and promoting the development of this traditional handicraft in the country, encouraging its sustainable development at the locality, and respecting the rich and diverse culture of the nation.

REFERENCES

1.  An Chương (2010), Tranh dân gian Đông Hồ (Đông Hồ Folk Printings), Nxb. Mỹ thuật (Publishing House of Fine Arts), Hanoi.
2. Maurice Durand (1960), L’imagerie populaire Vietnamienne, Publication à l’EcoleFrançaise d’Extreme Orient, Vol. 47, EFEO, Paris.
3. Nguyễn Đăng Dũng (2018), Nghệ nhân, họa sĩ Nguyễn Đăng Sần và dòng tranh dân gian Đông Hồ (Artisan, Painter Nguyễn Đăng Sần and the Đông Hồ Folk Printing Line),  Nxb. Mỹ thuật (Publishing House of Fine Arts), Hanoi.
4. Nguyễn Thị Thu Hòa, Trịnh Sinh and Lê Bích (2019), Dòng tranh Dân gian Đông Hồ (Đông Hồ Folk Printing Line). Nxb. Thế giới (The Gioi Publishing House), Hanoi.
5. Nguyễn Thái Lai (2002), Làng tranh Đông Hồ (Đông Hồ Printing Village), Nxb. Mỹ thuật (Publishing House of Fine Arts), Hanoi, Pp.125-143.
6. Từ Thị Loan (2016), Di sản văn hóa tranh dân gian Đông Hồ (Cultural Heritage of Đông Hồ Folk Woodblock Printings), Nxb. Lao Động (Publishing House of Labor), Hanoi.
7. Jean-Pierre Pascal (2017), Estampes du Việt Nam: La Culture Vietnamienne à travers les estampes populaires. Atelier Baie.
8. Research for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage on the Verge of Extinction: Vietnamese ICH Element Đông Hồ Woodblock Printings (2017), final report by International Research Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (IRCI) and Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts Studies.
9.  Những công trình nghiên cứu về nghề làm tranh dân gian Đông Hồ (2019), (Research Papers on the Craft of Making Đông Hồ Woodblock Printings), Bùi Hoài Sơn, Võ Hoàng Lan, Trần Quang Nam selected, Nxb. Thế giới (The gioi Publishing House), Hanoi.