The art of lacquerware is one of Myanmar’s ten main traditional handicrafts and has been known to exist since the Bagan period (11th – 13th century). The profession has provided a livelihood for generations of artisans, and the art has been handed down in the family or taught to younger generations by master artisans in traditional apprenticeships. While preserving and upkeeping the traditional work, new innovations are also added in keeping with the times.

Bagan is one of the main cultural heritage sites of Myanmar where the lacquerware industry has prospered for centuries. As tourism was developed, hotels, tour companies, and transportation businesses were set up in Myanmar, including at the cultural site of Bagan. Many job opportunities opened for local people, and lacquerware sales increased. To sustain the skillful workforce for the lacquerware sector, the Myanmar Lacquerware Association (MLA) initiated the development of a new generation of lacquerware artists – in cooperation with the Lacquerware Technology College (LTC) under the Ministry of Cooperative and Rural Development.

There are six to eight medium-sized lacquerware enterprises in Bagan, each employing 51 to 100 workers. They all have their own retail shops that display varieties of lacquerware products from the region. The enterprises rely heavily on the small and micro-firms that supply either semi-finished or finished products to them. About 60% to 80% of the finished products displayed at their retail shops are supplied by small and micro-firms.

The artisans are important players in the lacquerware industry, due to the labor-intensive and traditional production process.
In Bagan, all employees of the small and medium-sized lacquerware workshop are locals. Their average age is 20 to 30 years.”

LTC and MLA recruit the youth with an interest in lacquerware in the Bagan area and train them in the art of lacquerware and the basics of business management. MLA provides support through training cooperation with LTC, sharing techniques and creating job opportunities for newly trained artisans. For example, the Ever Stand lacquerware workshop in Bagan recruited 25 young apprentices from surrounding villages and is now providing on-the-job training, which costs about $25,000 per year for 25 young apprentices.

Raising a new generation of artisans promotes the traditional lacquerware of Myanmar and contributes to the urban and rural community development. It creates employment opportunities and improves the income and living standard of the local artisans and workforce in the lacquerware sector.