Jiexiu

Beijing – October 19, 2026 -- China's Shanxi province brought hand-knotted brooches, colored glazeware and lacquerware to more than 100 foreign diplomats at a Geneva reception in late September. Some guests left talking about visiting.

Datong artist made edelweiss brooches for Swiss guests on the spot

The reception was hosted by the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office at Geneva. Knotting artist Yang Xuefei of Datong displayed 48 brooches made with 'Datong knotting', a recognized intangible cultural heritage (ICH) craft. She also made several pieces on-site for Swiss visitors.

Those pieces featured the edelweiss, a national symbol of Switzerland. They also carried ornamental flying ribbons inspired by statues at the Yungang Grottoes. Yang and her colleagues have created more than 500 cultural products using the technique and have shown them in a number of countries.