Magic in fingers | 比比·罗素：发现手指魔力

比比·罗素：发现手指魔力

Bibi Russell: Finding magic in fingers

*本文选自教科文《信使》杂志2018年第2期

联合国教科文组织和平艺术家、著名设计师比比·罗素因南亚地区原本寂寂无闻的传统毛巾（gamucha）获得了巨大成功。在她的努力下，这种南亚人用来擦手擦脸的日常用品走上了全球时尚舞台，可与顶级时尚单品相媲美。然而，她真正的成功并不在这些舞台上，而是在她的祖国孟加拉国以及乌兹别克斯坦、哥伦比亚和印度的数百家纺织作坊里。

2017年12月，她参加了印度拉贾斯坦邦遗产周活动，展示了她的卡迪收藏品，这是一种以印度土布为原材料的纺织品。她以这种方式向圣雄甘地和发明这种土布的拉贾斯坦邦传统纺织工人致敬。

2018年2月，罗素还参加了英联邦时装交易会，此次交易会是英联邦国家关于时尚在可持续发展方面的展示。交易会在伊丽莎白女王和剑桥公爵夫人的支持下于白金汉宫举行。

这位与众不同的设计师目前从事的工作，用她自己的话说，是“非常艰难，但在情感上难以割舍的项目”。自2017年9月以来，她一直在西孟加拉邦最大的女孩庇护所工作，鼓励并教授女孩子们（有些是童年时就被拐卖的受害者）掌握能够养活自己的一技之长，这项工作得到了该邦首席部长玛玛塔·班纳吉（Mamata Banerjee）的鼎力支持。比比说：“在人人都在谈论增强妇女权利和实现权利平等的采访21世纪，这里贩卖女童现象依然猖獗，这简直让人难以置信！”比比告诉我们，这个邦贫困家庭出身的女童售价不到100美元。“假如我有力量完成这项艰巨的工作，我希望可以为这些女孩开启通往新生活的大门，看到她们收获尊严和爱。”

罗素的努力如今有了回报。2018年3月7日，庇护所的33名女孩，包括6名罗兴亚族难民小孩，在由政府组办、罗素构想的一次加尔各答时装展上走台。她们穿着朋友们设计的衣服，这些朋友都接受过孟加拉国最著名设计师罗素的培训。

20世纪90年代末以来，罗素致力于开发传统纺织品和手工艺品，为成千上万的人用“魔法手指”摆脱贫困提供了机会。

问：时尚设计是您最大的爱好，也是您的职业，不过您当初是作为一名顶级模特成名的。一位年轻的孟加拉姑娘怎么会决定去伦敦时装学院学习呢？

答：以前在家时，母亲常做衣服给我们穿。姐姐们从不抱怨，不过我总是不太满意。所以在我10岁那年，爸爸就给我买了一台缝纫机。一个10岁的孩子连剪刀都拿不好，但我却开始试着做衣服了。

在我十五六岁时，爸爸给了我一本关于香奈儿时装店的书，这让我见识到法国高级时装，知道了原来时尚也有规则可循，于是就很想去学。在6岁到12岁之间，我获得过很多艺术奖项，但我不想学艺术，我想做点与众不同的事，我想去伦敦。在六个月的时间里，伦敦时装学院都没有接受我的申请，但他们最终还是在附加很多条件之后录取了我。

您在西方生活了20年，成为一名顶级模特，事业有成，却在1994年返回孟加拉国，这是为什么？

我年轻时就有一个梦想。我不明白，为什么人人都觉得孟加拉人很穷。在我看来，我的祖国有着丰富的色彩和音乐！我是带着自己的梦想去欧洲的。有一天，我意识到自己已经完全准备好了，该回家了。

我认为，孟加拉人民需要我，就像我需要他们一样。一拍即合，是需要两只手的。如今，历经20多年，我知道自己当初的选择没有错。这里的人知道，我尊重他们，帮助他们重拾尊严，这才是最重要的。而另一方面，这里的人对我关爱备至，给了我继续前行的力量，世界上再没有什么能让我放弃这项工作。

我从未背弃我的祖国。我的父母一直住在孟加拉国，所以即便我在国外，也会定期回国。我出生在孟加拉国，我的童年在这里度过。我认为童年时光会对人的一生产生重要影响。

我有一个美满的家庭。我父母教会了我欣赏本国文化和他国文化。孟加拉国曾是印度的一部分，英国人和莫卧儿人都曾经统治过这里。多亏了父母对我的教育，我才能全面了解“大印度”，以及其他国家的文化。我觉得家长应教导子女深入了解本国文化和传统，以免失传湮灭。

您回到孟加拉国后开了一家小裁缝店，1995年发展成为“比比织造公司”，大部分传统织布工都生活在乡村，您为什么要把公司设在首都达卡呢？

我在达卡只有一间办公室，我需要在办公室里和世界各地进行联络。但在99.9%的时间里，我都在乡村。我们和孟加拉国全国各地的手工艺人一起工作。这些人并非家境显赫，他们每一个人，包括在办公室里端茶倒水的勤务人员，都觉得“比比织造公司”是他们自己的公司。

我做这一切都是为了孟加拉人民，“比比织造公司”属于孟加拉国。

您认为“比比织造公司”的企业精神是什么？

我不能说“比比织造公司”不以营利为目的，但我们只赚取微薄的利润。我们主要关注的是保护和复兴传统手工艺，支持手工艺人，提高他们对教育和健康重要性的认识。

我在1994年创建“比比织造公司”时就看到了变化。在办公室和村里的所有工人都只有两三个子女。他们知道如何更加合理地管理自己挣到的钱，他们的生活水平也提高了。这些人走出了贫困，深知孩子上学的重要性。教育和健康是所有国家经济的支柱。

“比比织造公司”有多少雇员？

我们的办公室里有大约30名职员，来自孟加拉国全国各地。有些人起初认为自己并不具备办公室工作所需的技能和知识，不过我一向能以积极的态度看待他们。

此外，我们与成千上万的手工艺人合作。我说不准确切人数，大概有10万人左右吧。您觉得人数很多是吗？可这还不到全国织布工人总数的1%呢！我希望自己能够在有生之年走完这项事业的第一步，要做的事情还有那么多。

在印度、孟加拉国和中亚国家，农业是最主要的经济部门。从事农业和手工业的人总是生活在一起的，我的合作者是那些靠双手创造财富的人，我的理念是“时尚促发展”。

“时尚促发展”这个理念是怎么形成的？

1996年，我第一次在联合国教科文组织举办时装展时就产生了这个念头。联合国机构一向很少认可时装设计师，但联合国教科文组织看到了时尚与发展、教育以及健康之间的联系。联合国教科文组织举办的“孟加拉织布工”时装秀在全球29个电视频道播出，并且得到了时任联合国教科文组织总干事费德里克·马约尔（Federico Mayor）和西班牙索菲亚（Sofía）王后的支持。媒体成就了模特比比，而这两个人，他们从一开始就对我信任有加，鼎力支持我的时装设计事业。我还获得了国际社会的大力支持。从那以后，我收到了世界各国一流高校的邀请，这些大学现在都在从事时尚促发展的工作。我还应邀出席了世界经济论坛，因为人们终于认识到创意经济和社会经济的重要性。

1999年，联合国教科文组织指定您做“促进发展时尚设计师”，2001年又授予您“和平艺术家”称号。联合国教科文组织的认可对您来说意味着什么？

我有今天的成就，的确得益于联合国教科文组织。但另一方面，我的工作让人们认识到，孟加拉国不仅有着这样那样的问题，同时也是一个异彩纷呈的国家。

在获得“促进发展时尚设计师”称号之后，我回国向织布工展示了我的证书。我告诉他们，这张证书不是我一个人的，而是属于大家的。尊重人的人格尊严，就能改变人的想法。

任何认可都会带给人力量。我是伦敦艺术大学的研究员，授予我这种认可，是因为我为推广手工织布机作出了贡献。我还获得了孟加拉学院颁发的最高奖，孟加拉学院是孟加拉国1955年仿照法兰西学院建立的国家级语言权威机构。世界最著名的设计师也认可了我为发展所做的工作。国际社会的这些认可对我从事时尚促发展的工作有很大帮助。

您作为时尚设计师，开展了哪些具体工作呢？

“比比织造公司”的每一件产品都采用天然材料，手工制作，我从未使用过合成纤维或是人工染色剂。我并不指望人们时时刻刻都会穿戴这些纯天然的手工制品，但即便您有四五套衣服，也请经常穿用吧！

我设计图样的灵感来自传统设计。当然，我会变换颜色，简化图案，但绝不会改变传统的棉布和丝绸纺织方法。

配饰和围巾也是我们最畅销的产品。我的手镯是用孟加拉国遍地生长的一种植物——凤眼兰制作的，现在有六个村庄的妇女在为我们制作这种手镯。西班牙演员安东尼奥·班德拉斯（Antonio Banderas）在为我们推广 gamuchas（一种纯棉毛巾），这样我就可以省下一笔宣传费了。我绝不花钱做广告，因为“比比织造公司”是自筹资金项目，有成百上千的员工还靠我维持生计。

您的工作是怎么发展起来的？

我开始在柬埔寨工作时，就从回收做起，现在我已经是一名回收专家了！在孟加拉国，我用人们扔掉的东西作为生产原料。

我还从孟加拉国的“黄包车艺术”中获得灵感，制作眼镜架，我本人也经常佩戴。

但真正的“革命”在于我们为年轻人设计了服装。我们制作各种颜色的牛仔裤、不同风格的莎丽和现代款短上衣。

您如何平衡家庭生活和职业活动呢？

我了解婚姻生活，我有两个孩子。孩子大约九岁或十岁时，我就不得不让他们明白，我有一个梦想，如果不去努力实现这个梦想，我会感到很沮丧。如今，我的父母都已过世，孩子们也生活在国外，但和我一起工作的手工艺人从不让我感到寂寞。他们都是普通人，每个月的第一天需要领工资去付房租。他们不是我的家人，但他们对我来说却是最重要的。

回到孟加拉国以后，我就开始扶助街头流浪儿童。我会给他们一些钱，但条件是他们必须去上学。非政府组织开办的学校通常不招收流浪儿童，我就出面为这些孩子作担保。一开始只有一个孩子，然后是两个，现在有100多名孩子。当我在达卡时，他们给了我无尽的快乐。

Bibi Russell: Finding magic in fingers

UNESCO’s Artist for Peace and well-known designer Bibi Russell has achieved a tour de force: thanks to her, the humble gamuchas ‒ traditional cotton towels that people in South Asia generally use to wipe their hands and faces ‒ rival the most prestigious pieces on fashion podiums all over the world. But her real success is away from these podiums, in hundreds of weaving workshops in her country, Bangladesh, but also in Uzbekistan, Colombia, India.

In December 2017, she took part in India’s Rajasthan Heritage Week, showcasing her khadi collection. The show was her tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and to the traditional Rajasthani weavers who created the homespun cloth.  

Russell also participated in the Commonwealth Fashion Exchange in February 2018, with an exhibition showcasing sustainable fashion from the Commonwealth countries. It was   launched at Buckingham Palace with the support of the Queen and the Duchess of Cambridge.

The designer with a difference is now working on what she calls “a difficult and emotionally very engaging project”. With the direct support of Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, she has been working at the Liluah Home(link is external), the state’s largest shelter for girls, since September 2017. Here, she teaches and motivates the girls, some of whom are victims of child trafficking, to develop income-generating skills. “I can’t believe that in the twenty-first century, when everyone is talking about women’s empowerment and equal rights, we are still selling our girls!” she says, pointing out that destitute girls in the state are sold for less than $100.  “If I have the strength to finish this difficult work, I hope it will open doors for these girls to start a new life filled with dignity and love.”

Russell’s efforts are paying off. On 7 March 2018, thirty-three girls from the shelter, including six Rohingya refugee kids, walked the ramp at a fashion show organized by the government in Kolkata and conceived by Russell. They were wearing clothes designed by their friends at the Home, who have been trained by Bangladesh’s best-known designer.  

Since the late 1990s, Russell has been working to develop traditional textiles and handicrafts, giving a chance to thousands of people to rise out of poverty thanks to their “magic fingers”, as she puts it.

Interview by Krista Pikkat (UNESCO) and Jasmina Šopova

Fashion design was your true passion and vocation, though you first became famous as a top model. How did a young girl from Bangladesh decide to go to a fashion school in London?

At home, my mother used to sew clothes for us. My sisters never complained, but I was never quite happy with the clothes. So when I was 10 years old, my father bought me a sewing machine. You can barely hold a pair of scissors properly when you’re 10, but I started experimenting.

When I was 15 or 16, my father gave me a book about the fashion house of Chanel. I discovered French haute couture, and realized that there is a grammar in fashion that I wanted to study. I had received different awards for art between the ages of 6 and 12, but I did not want to study art. I wanted to do something different. I wanted to go to London. Over six months, the London College of Fashion refused my application, but they finally accepted me, with many conditions attached.

After twenty years in the West, where you built a successful career as a top model, you returned to Bangladesh in 1994. What made you do that?

Since I was young, I had a dream. I could not understand why Bangladeshi people were thought of as poor. For me, the country was rich with colours and music! When I went to Europe, my dream went with me. One day I knew that I was mentally and physically ready to go back home.

I believed that the people of Bangladesh needed me as much as I needed them. You need two hands to clap. Today, after more than twenty years of experience, I know I was right. They know I respect them and help them restore their human dignity. That is the most important thing. On the other hand, they give me so much love and affection! This gives me the strength to go forward. Nothing in the world can take me away from this work.

I have never turned my back on my country. My parents always lived in Bangladesh, so I returned home regularly even when I lived abroad. I was born in Bangladesh and spent my childhood there. I think childhood has a major impact on your life.

I have a wonderful family. My parents taught me to appreciate our culture as well as the culture of other countries. Bangladesh used to be a part of India, which was governed by the British and the Mughals. Thanks to the education my parents gave me, I learned all about Greater India and about the culture of other countries as well. I think parents must teach their children more about their culture and traditions so that these traditions do not die.

When you returned to Bangladesh, you started a small tailor’s workshop, which grew into Bibi Productions(link is external) in 1995. Most traditional weavers live in villages. Why did you decide to base your company in Dhaka, the capital?

I only have one office located in Dhaka. I need an office from which we can connect to the rest of the world. But I spend 99.9 per cent of my time in villages. We work with craftsmen from different parts of Bangladesh. They are not from privileged families, and each one of them – starting from the person who makes tea in my office – feels that Bibi Productions is theirs.

I have done this for the people of Bangladesh, and Bibi Productions belongs to the country.

How would you define the philosophy behind Bibi Productions?

We cannot say that Bibi Productions is not-for-profit, but we make very little profit. Our focus is on saving and reviving the crafts and supporting the craftspeople, and on raising their awareness about the importance of education and health.

I see the difference since I started Bibi Productions in 1994. All the people working either in the office or in the villages have no more than two or three children. They know how to better manage the money they make, and their standard of living has improved. Having come out of poverty, they understand the importance of their children going to school. Education and health is the backbone of any economy in any country.

How many people does Bibi Productions employ?

We have some thirty people from different corners of Bangladesh working in the office. There are people who first thought they would not have the skills and knowledge to work in the office. But I am able to recognize people with a positive attitude.

In addition, we work with thousands of craftspeople. I cannot say their exact number, but they are around 100,000. You think that’s huge? It is not even one per cent of the weavers in the country! I wish that I could feel that I have reached the first step of the ladder before I die – there is so much more to be done.

In countries like India, Bangladesh, Central Asia, agriculture is the most important sector of the economy. People working in agriculture and handicrafts live side by side. I work with people who do things by hand: Fashion for Development is what I am.

How did the idea of Fashion for Development start? 

It started when I held my first show at UNESCO, in 1996. Designers are very rarely given recognition by United Nations agencies, but the Organization recognized the link between fashion and development, education and health. UNESCO’s “Weavers of Bangladesh” show was covered by twenty-nine television channels around the world. It was supported by Federico Mayor, the then Director-General of UNESCO, and Queen Sofía of Spain. If the media made me Bibi the  model, these two people, who believed in me from the start, gave me priceless support in my career as a designer. I also received a lot of international support. Since then, I have been invited to top universities in the world, which now work on fashion for development, and to the World Economic Forum (WEF(link is external)), because they realize the importance of the creative economy and the social economy.

In 1999, UNESCO designated you as a Designer for Development. Then, in 2001, you were made an Artist for Peace. What do UNESCO’s recognitions mean to you?

What I am today is thanks to UNESCO. But also, thanks to my work, people realize that Bangladesh does not only have problems, it is also a wonderful country.

When I was designated Designer for Development, I returned home and showed the certificate to the weavers. I told them that the honour was for them, not just for me. You can change people’s minds when you respect their human dignity.

Any recognition gives you strength. I am a fellow of the University of the Arts, London. This recognition is given to me for the contribution I have made to promoting handloom. I have received the highest award from the Bangla Academy, Bangladesh’s national language authority, established in 1955 on the model of the French Academy. And the biggest designers in the world have also recognized the work I do for development. The international recognition helps me a lot in my work of promoting Fashion for Development.  

What defines your work as a fashion designer?

Everything we do at Bibi Productions is natural and handmade. I have never used synthetic fabrics or artificial colours. I don’t expect people to wear natural and handmade all the time, but even if you have four or five outfits, wear them every now and then!

My models are inspired by traditional design. Of course I change colours, I simplify the design, but I never change the traditional way of weaving cotton or silk. 

Among my biggest sellers are my accessories and scarves. My bangles are made out of water hyacinth, a plant that grows widely in Bangladesh. I now have women in six villages  making these bangles. And my gamuchas are promoted by the Spanish actor, Antonio Banderas, so I do not need to spend money on publicity. I would never do that anyway – Bibi Productions is a self-funded project, and hundreds of people depend on me for their livelihoods.

How has your work evolved?

When I started working in Cambodia, I began recycling and today, I have become an expert at recycling! In Bangladesh, I make things out of what people throw away.

I was also inspired by the "rickshaw art" in Bangladesh to make spectacle frames that I personally wear very often.

But the real "revolution" was brought about with our design for young people. We do jeans in different colours, saris in a different way, modern blouses, etc.

How do you balance your family life with your professional activities? 

I know married life, I have two children. When my kids were around 9 or 10, I had to make them realize that I have a dream, and that if I do not pursue it, I would be frustrated. Today, my parents have both passed away, my children live abroad, but the craftspeople I work with never allow me to feel alone. These are ordinary people, who need their wages on the first day of the month to pay the rent. They are not my family, but they mean more than anything to me.  

Since I returned to Bangladesh, I started to support street children. I gave them some money on the condition they went to school. I became their guarantor for NGO (non-governmental organization) schools, where street children are not usually accepted. It was first one child, then another – now they are more than a hundred! They are my source of joy when I am in Dhaka.

With this interview, the UNESCO Courier marks the celebration of the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, on 21 May.

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