British fashion instructor Natalie Gibson. (LIU XIANGRUI/CHINA DAILY)
"And, some international designers are also eager to learn more about China and its culture."
Gibson has since 1980 been the course leader and head of fashion print at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, a leading educational institute for art and design under the University of Arts London.
She's celebrated for her style and has nurtured such icons as Stella McCartney, Sarah Burton, John Galliano and Alexander McQueen.
She was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire for her contributions to fashion and textile design in 2014.
So the Chinese association was delighted Gibson could engage with students, and she was delighted for the chance to visit Miao communities.
"I didn't expect to learn so much about the Miao people," she says.
"I didn't know they are so scattered."
The British artists and Chinese students spent a week traveling throughout Guizhou province to visit museums, markets and villages. They learned about such crafts as embroidery, silver-smithing and batik.
The Miao traditionally wear intricately ornamented silver jewelry, especially on important occasions. The ethnic group's embroidery is on China's intangible cultural heritage list.
The researchers engaged silversmiths in a village known for producing some of the best jewelry to learn about every dimension of the craft from inspiration to production.
Gibson says she was particularly impressed by a private museum dedicated to Miao culture in Guizhou's capital, Guiyang. It exhibits intricate garments, including some dating back more than a century.
She was also struck by the sophisticated products the museum had developed, such as scarves based on Miao patterns.
Gibson says she was also amazed by their culture, such as the Miao creation story. All living things, including humans, hatched from the eggs of the Butterfly Mother and, consequently, should be treated equally.
