Craft Platforms: Case studies 邹柳兰蓝染-Zhou Milan Blue dye
June 17, 2020 2020-11-15 9:30Craft Platforms: Case studies 邹柳兰蓝染-Zhou Milan Blue dye
邹柳兰蓝染
Milan Zhou - a blue dye artist
HIGHLIGHTS
- Uses social media: Wechat, Tiktok
- Film short video on Wechat and Tiktok
- Mobile phone plays an important role in her craft such as recording videos
- Without internet marketing and online stores, her art relies on oral communication among friends and wechat.
- 使用的社交媒体：微信，抖音。
- 在微信和抖音平台上上传短视频。
- 智能手机在她的手工艺宣传上起到很大作用，比如拍视频等等。
- 她没有任何线上网站和网店，主要通过朋友之间的口口相传和微信来传播自己工作室的信息。
BRIEF INTRODUCTION
Figure 1 : Milan’s studio
周米兰今年45岁，汉族人，2017年前在广东等沿海地区打工，回到白水洞村以后，受到从日本千叶大学毕业、研究地域文化的阮将军博士的影响，开始一边做导游，一边做蓝染。她说做蓝染是她一生中最喜欢的事情。平时周米兰会做一些蓝染艺术品进行展示或者售卖，例如抱枕、挂画等等。另外，她也会为游客们提供蓝染体验课程，教他们染布，各个年龄段的体验者都有。
Zhou Milan is 45 years old, a Han nationality, working in coastal areas such as Guangdong before 2017. After returning to Baishuidong Village, she was influenced by Dr. Jiangjun Ruan who graduated from Chiba University in Japan and studied regional culture. Then she started working as a tour guide while doing blue dyeing. She said that doing blue dyeing was her favorite thing in her life. Milan usually make some blue dyed artworks to display or sell, such as pillows and hanging pictures. In addition, she also provides tourists with blue dyeing experience courses, teaching them to dye cloth, for all ages of experience.
DIGITAL ‘TOUCH POINTS’
Use of Digital equipment
Digital equipment:
Milan zhou has a mobile phone, she uses it to film Wechat videos and tiktok videos. She used to only use wechat, recently, she was taught to use tiktok hand in hand and influenced by some young people around her.
米兰有一部手机，她用手机来拍摄微信朋友圈视频和抖音视频。她过去只用微信，最近受身边年轻人的影响学会了使用抖音。
Use of Social Media
- Wechat and TiktokMilan Zhou likes to use Wechat the most.
微信和抖音
米兰更常使用微信。
Figure 2 : Milan’s wechat news
Milan often sends news on wechat to communicate with customers and friends.
Figure 2 (left) Production process
Figure 2 (middle) product display
Figure 2 (right) Blue dye activity record
米兰会经常发朋友圈与客户、朋友交流。
图2（左） 制作产品的过程
图2（中）制作的产品展示
图2（右）蓝染活动记录
Figure 3 : Milan’s Tiktok news
图3（左）米兰的抖音主页，有粉丝1315个，累计获得点赞数1.4万
图3（右）一条手工制作草凳子的短视频
The challenges of applying digital platforms in Milan’s craft activities
对新媒体、计算机技术、营销技术等不了解也不会用。
She doesn’t know about new media, computer technology, marketing technology and how to use them.
The digital platforms involved in Milan’s making and marketing
SUMMARY
- Every year, she goes to Southeast Guizhou to learn how to dye cloth and bring back the dyes.
- There is no internet marketing or online stores, just the word-of-mouth communication between friends and the spread of Wechat circle of friends. Everyone knows that Milan is doing this.
- Usually there will be some tourists and children to experience dyeing cloth. Both boys and girls, the youngest being only 4 years old, have the same proportion of men and women. Team fee is ¥50 per person, if there are only 2 or 3 people, it is ¥100.
- 每年都会去一次贵州黔东南学习染布，并带染料回来。
- 没有网络营销、网店那些，只是朋友间口口相传以及微信朋友圈的传播，大家知道米兰在做这个。
- 平时会有一些游客、小朋友来体验染布。男孩女孩都有，最小的只有4岁，男女比例差不多。团队收费是50一人，如果只有2、3个人来的话就是100一人。
Figure 4: Children are experiencing blue dye
CONTACT
Please visit the following site to know more about Milan Zhou:
Wechat: Z18874042669
Tiktok: 2211772788
Contact Us
Craftplatforms.org has been produced by the project research team at Queen Mary University of London, UK, and Hunan University, China.
Contact E-mail: contact@craftplatforms.org
Prof. Nick Bryan-Kinns
n.bryan-kinns@qmul.ac.uk
School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science
Queen Mary University of London
London E1 4NS
Prof. Hao Tan
htan@hnu.edu.cn
School of Design, Hunan University
Yuelu Mountain, Changsha
