CAMBODIAN ARTS & CRAFTS

Khmer silk waving and Art designs

The art of silk weaving in Cambodia has contributed together with history of the nation and specially it has grown much more since the beginning of the first century, when textiles were used in the trade, whereas modern textiles have continued to follow tradition and crafts since ancient times. And produce beautiful arts depicted as a bas-reliefs on the statues of the Khmer ancestors. Nowadays, due to the needs and demands of the tourists, you will find out the Cambodian arts are more into the design of the temples you see in Angkor complex.

Craftsmen cut and carve copper plates to carve the various sculptures, making bowls, swords, bracelets and many other souvenirs you see throughout Cambodia. After all, the sword made from copper was used at the wedding. Also, the copper-and-bracelet-style hammers and bracelets have become a popular souvenir for tourists.

The workshops at Artisans Angkor’s headquarters are in the heart of Siem Reap. The silk farm is about 15 minutes outside the city. Both – the workshops and the craft center – are open to tourists every day. In the free tours you will learn a lot about the organization and revival of Cambodian handicrafts. By the way: You do not need to register beforehand. There are enough trained guides in different languages ​​on site. At the end of the tour you will be led to a shop where you can e.g. you can buy a beautiful silk scarf or carved elephant. Because, of course, the products manufactured in the workshops of Artisans Angkor should also be sold. I was already in the workshops and in the silk farm and it was extremely educational. (Memo to me: write blog article about it.

Cambodian culture, crafts and arts

The cultural heritage and the Khmer art is a great importance for Cambodia as well as Southeast Asian art and culture and is reflected in many areas of today’s Cambodian life. Many buildings, such as the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, are built in the Khmer architectural art and decorated with motifs such as the Garuda, a mythical bird symbol of Hinduism. Artisan goods, often made of gold or silver lamé, also show traditional motifs. The classic Cambodian dance represents legends from the lives of the gods.

Arts and crafts of Cambodia rotted to the Angkor which has stood for mysterious, unmanageably extensive temple complexes in the Cambodian forests, which can still give an idea of ​​their former splendor today. Angkor was the culmination of a civilization that began to develop in the first centuries AD. The first Buddhist and Brahmin (Hindu) works of art have survived from the 6th century. The rise of the Khmer Empire in Angkor, on the northern edge of Tonle Sap, began in the 9th century. On the heydays of Angkorian, the Khmer ruled the entire area of ​​what is now Cambodia, southern Vietnam, Laos and the central plain of the Chao Phraya in Thailand. They were one of the largest and most powerful peoples in Asia. The importance of the Khmer Empire was manifested in a number of gigantic temples up to the 13th century, of which the Angkor Wat is considered the largest sacred structure on earth.

What spirit is behind the overwhelming temples, which deities were they consecrated, on what social and economic structure could they be built? What was the society like that was able to achieve such services? What self-image did their kings have? These are questions that everyone who wants to get to know old Cambodia arts and crafts. Angkor Complex offers the opportunity to get an overview of the diversity of art and crafts and culture of the Cambodian, but also addresses the most important cultural and historical topics, so that visitors get an idea of the historical, social and religious context of the works.

Back in 2006, almost 140 stone sculptures, bronze figures and wooden sculptures as well as silver works and paintings will come to Bonn from the National Museum in Phnom Penh. The Indian Museum in Berlin and the Musée National des Arts Asiatiques Guimet in Paris also lend objects related to the Cambodian arts and crafts. The exhibition provides a unique overview of Cambodia’s culture, starting in the 6th century with stone sculptures from the pre-Korean kingdoms of Funan and Zhenla. The central theme, however, is the art and architecture of the Angkor period (9th-13th centuries). Questions of water management, rice cultivation and trade relations are also discussed, since they formed the basis for the country’s extraordinary wealth.