Inheritance Patterns under Cultural Ecology Theory for the Sustainable Development of Traditional Handicrafts

Culture is the fourth pillar of sustainable development. The protection of intangible cultural heritage is an important way to safeguard the transmission of intangible heritage across generations. With the help of cultural ecology theory, this paper compares cases of inheritance and development in two different handicrafts: Bai tie-dyeing and Beijing carved lacquer. The results show that under the influence of different cultural ecologies, the family inheritance pattern of Bai tie-dyeing, and the master–apprentice inheritance pattern of Beijing carved lacquer have undergone qualitative changes in modern society. This paper puts forward the distinction between representative inheritance and group inheritance and suggests a protection mechanism accordingly. This paper further suggests that a modern mentoring model should be promoted as the inheritance pattern to further aid handicraft development, and a clear division of economic interests is also appointed to apply with the premiumization development and mass development.