Li Dexi·Spring Banquet Song Brocade

Spring Banquet: How Master Li Dexi Weaves an Entire Spring into Silk

Inspired by the spring gatherings depicted in Tang Dynasty poetry, the Spring Banquet pattern evokes a scene of blossoms blooming in profusion beneath garden trees.

Li Dexi: The "Sage of Weaving”

Widely regarded as one of the four great modern masters of brocade weaving, Li Dexi holds a singular place in the craft.

Born in Suzhou, Li Dexi has devoted more than five decades to the art of brocade weaving. Revered across the industry as the "Sage of Weaving", he was the first officially accredited Master Silk Weaver of Jiangsu Province, China.

• He has successfully replicated numerous silk textiles from the Palace Museum collection, and remains the only artisan to have reproduced the Tang Dynasty silk gauze from Famen Temple — a 1,300-year-old textile unearthed alongside the finger bone relic of the Buddha.
• Master Li and his team wove the world's longest Song brocade work, the Song Brocade Edition of the Silk Road Hand-painted Scroll. Recognised with a world record certification, the piece is now held in the permanent collection of the National Museum of China.

With over fifty years of dedicated study and practice, Master Li embodies the spirit of craftsmanship stitch by stitch. Yet what defines him more than all these accolades is a simple, steadfast belief: heritage silk should be worn on the body, not locked away in glass cases. His work strikes a perfect balance between the traditional craftsmanship of Song brocade and the soft, wearable quality of modern textiles — heritage in bloom.

The Pattern: Whispers in a Quiet Courtyard

The Spring Banquet Song brocade is designed around the concept of "whispers in a quiet courtyard". Peonies, irises and lilies spread across the fabric like a flowering carpet. A small fox curls contentedly among the blooms, its fluffy cloud-like tail draped over rose branches. A white rabbit and two cats perch among wisteria blossoms: one watches turtles and swallows at play, while the other reaches out a paw to bat at a swallow's tail feathers. A round little pig lies belly-flat in the shade of the flowers.

Blooming peonies symbolise innate prosperity and good fortune; interwoven flowering branches stand for vibrant vitality; the auspicious beasts and birds scattered throughout carry wishes of welcoming spring and receiving blessings. In Song brocade, patterns are never mere decoration. Every flower, every bird, every small creature is a blessing woven into the silk.

Craft & Authenticity

Spring Banquet is built on the classic 3-end twill ground weave — the signature foundation of authentic Song brocade — and rendered in a five-layer weft gold-brocade pattern weave. Five sets of weft threads work together to create lush florals, soft animal fur textures, smooth colour gradients and subtle golden shimmer.
Gold threads are tucked between the other weft layers, so that the pattern shifts in colour and depth as light moves across the fabric. Every authentic piece bears Li Dexi's embossed steel seal, the definitive mark of originality found exclusively on his original works.

Spring Banquet is more than just a fabric. It is a season, a celebration, and a blessing woven into silk.

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