Shen Shou Art Museum

　　The Shen Shou Art Museum was built in 1992. It is situated by the scenic Haohe River in Nantong, on the former site of the “Nantong County Women’s Handicraft Training School” (China’s first embroidery school). The museum name was inscribed by [Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress]. The museum displays a collection of historical photographs and embroidered works by Shen Shou, a master of modern Chinese embroidery, and provides a detailed introduction to her artistic achievements as well as the essence of embroidery art by her disciples. Shen Shou, originally named Xue Zhi, with the courtesy name Xue Jun and the pseudonym Xue Huan, also known as the Mistress of Tianxiang Pavilion, was born in 1871 into an antique dealer’s family at Haihongfang, Changmen, Wuxian, Jiangsu. Her father, Shen Chun, was well-versed in literature and history, studied salt administration laws, and once served as a salt official in Zhejiang. He had a deep love for cultural relics and a rich collection, later opening an antique shop. Her mother, Lady Song, gave birth to three sons and two daughters, with Xue Zhi being the fifth child. From a young age, she learned to read and write with her father. The cultural relics and calligraphy paintings in her home provided her with abundant artistic inspiration, stirring the strings of beauty within her young heart.

　　　　Suzhou embroidery has long been famous. Especially in the Mudu area outside Suzhou city, where almost every household raised silkworms and practiced embroidery, it could be called the “hometown of Su embroidery.” As a child, Xue Zhi often visited her grandmother’s home there and developed a strong interest in the marvelous art of Su embroidery. Under the guidance of her elder sister Shen Li, she started handling a needle at the age of seven and learning embroidery at eight, beginning a lifelong career in embroidery. Xue Zhi was intelligent and diligent in research, making rapid progress in her embroidery skills. Initially, she embroidered flowers, plants, and other primarily practical items. Later, she began using famous paintings from her family’s collection as models, creating artistic pieces. By the time she was sixteen or seventeen, she had become a renowned embroidery expert in Suzhou. At the age of twenty, Xue Zhi married Yu Jue (also known as Bing Chen or Zhao Xiong), a native of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, who later settled in Suzhou. He came from a scholarly family, was skilled in calligraphy and painting, and enjoyed good financial means. After marriage, the couple complemented each other—she with the needle, he with the brush, their embroidery and paintings enhancing one another. Aside from managing household duties, Xue Zhi dedicated herself to embroidery without interruption.

　　　　In October 1904, during the 30th year of the Guangxu reign, it was the 70th birthday of Empress Dowager Cixi. The Qing government ordered localities to present birthday gifts. Upon hearing the news, Yu Jue, following suggestions from friends, decided to offer embroidered birthday screens. They selected “The Eight Immortals Offering Birthday Wishes” and “The Buddha of Infinite Life” from their family’s collection of ancient paintings as models, quickly drafted the designs, and enlisted several skilled embroiderers to work on them. Xue Zhi poured much effort into these pieces. When Cixi saw “The Eight Immortals Offering Birthday Wishes” and three other “Buddha of Infinite Life” pieces, she greatly admired them, calling them peerless masterpieces. In addition to awarding Shen Xue Zhi the Fourth-Class Commercial Merit Medal, Cixi personally wrote the characters “Fu” (Fortune) and “Shou” (Longevity), presenting one to each of the Yu couple. From then on, Shen Xue Zhi changed her name to “Shen Shou.”

　　　　In 1914, Zhang Jian founded the Women’s Embroidery Training School in Nantong. Shen Shou was invited to Nantong, where she served as the school’s director and instructor, while Yu Jue became the manager of the Nantong Civilian Workshop. The training school was initially attached to the Nantong Women’s Normal School before moving to Haoyang Road in Nantong. The first class enrolled over twenty students, with numbers increasing year by year and the curriculum gradually improving. The school included accelerated, general, art, and research classes.

　　　　Shen Shou was not only an outstanding embroidery artist but also an experienced embroidery educator. In her teaching, she advocated “learning from nature,” cultivating students’ ability to observe carefully. For flower embroidery, she would place a fresh flower on the embroidery frame and embroider while observing it. For figure embroidery, she emphasized making the eyes come alive and capturing the spirit of the person. Under Shen Shou’s dedicated guidance, the Nantong Women’s Embroidery Training School trained many Su embroidery talents. The style of Nantong embroidery gradually took on characteristics of being “fine, thin, even, and clean,” opening up sales both domestically and internationally.

　　　　Shen Shou “taught embroidery in Nantong for eight years without tiring” (as described by Zhang Jian). Unfortunately, she fell ill due to overwork. Fearing that her art might not be passed on, Zhang Jian, while engaging renowned doctors to treat her, sought and gained her consent to personally record and organize her embroidery techniques. When her health slightly improved, Shen Shou recalled and dictated her knowledge, which after several months resulted in the completion of the book “Snow Huan Embroidery Manual.” In the preface, Zhang Jian wrote: “It took several months to complete this manual, with repeated inquiries, meticulous reviews, and multiple drafts. Not a single word was written by me without her input, nor a single phrase expressed that did not come from her.” This shows that the manual is indeed the crystallization of Shen Shou’s forty years of artistic practice. The book is divided into eight chapters: Embroidery Preparation, Embroidery Introduction, Stitch Techniques, Essential Points of Embroidery, Embroidered Works, Embroidery Ethics, Embroidery Seasons, and Embroidery Mastery. It provides comprehensive explanations on the use of threads and colors, key points of embroidery, moral cultivation required of artisans, and even health and hygiene, making it China’s first systematic monograph summarizing the artistic experience of Su embroidery.

　　　　On June 18, 1921, Shen Shou passed away in Nantong at the age of 48. According to her wishes, Zhang Jian buried her in the Nantong Ma'anshan Cemetery. The stone gate of the tomb bears Zhang Jian’s regular script inscription: “Tomb of Madam Shen from Wuxian, World Artisan.” A monument stands behind the tomb, with the front engraved with Zhang Jian’s “Eulogy for the Spirit of Madam Shen from Wuxian, World Artisan,” and the back carved with Shen Shou’s portrait. Though the master is gone, her art lives on. Her exquisite embroidered works remain in the world, still shining brilliantly. Museums in Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, Suzhou, and Nantong all house Shen Shou’s embroidery pieces. When people see her works such as “The Eight Immortals Offering Birthday Wishes,” “Portrait of Jesus,” “Portrait of Becker,” “Buddha of Infinite Life,” “Evergreen,” “Flower and Bird Albums,” “Zodiac Portraits,” “Guanyin Statue,” “Clam Painting,” and “Willow and Swallow Painting,” they are all captivated and amazed by how this Su embroidery master, with her extraordinary wisdom and skillful hands, elevated the traditional Su embroidery craft to a more splendid and magical artistic realm.

　　　　The Shen Shou Art Museum officially opened to the public in May 1992. Standing by the Haohe River, it adds further luster to the scenic waterway of Nantong.