Yang Zhaoqun

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Yang Zhaoqun, Male, Unspecified, from Jintan, Jiangsu, is a third-batch national representative bearer of Paper-cutting (Ⅶ-16). The tradition is documented in Jintan, Jiangsu. Within the regional tradition and school record of Paper-cutting in Jintan, Jiangsu: Jintan paper carving is transmitted in the towns and countryside of Jintan, Jiangsu, where folk customs are simple and honest; at festivals people paste up door-paper strips, festive notes, and patterned papers with images of auspicious children, the God of Longevity, the Eight Immortals, and Zhong Kui, while lanterns, dragon lanterns, and paper effigies also make extensive use of paper-carving patterns. In December 1993, Jintan was named a "home of paper carving" by the Ministry of Culture, and paper carving thereby became a representative local folk craft. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, local people, in order to drive away evil and pray for blessings, pasted up door-paper strips, festive notes, and patterned papers, as well as images of auspicious children, the God of Longevity, the Eight Immortals, and Zhong Kui, and window flowers of flowers, birds, insects, and fish in every household at festivals. In addition, lanterns, dragon lanterns, and paper effigies also used paper materials, and the various decorative patterns were carved or cut with knives and scissors. In December 1993, Jintan was named a "home of paper carving" by the Ministry of Culture.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, of Han ethnicity, born in November 1955 in Jintan County, Jiangsu Province. In childhood he was initiated and nurtured by the paper-cutting artist Xia Afeng, imitating cut shoe flowers, door pendants and the like. In the 1960s, under the guidance of the paper-cutting teacher Jiang Zhaozhi, he mastered the basic skills of carved paper. In the 1970s he took part in art creation at the county culture centre and received instruction from the famous paper-cutting artist Zhang Jigen. In 1975 his carved paper work Da Gan Cu Da Bian, Pu Ji Da Zhai Xian (Great Efforts Bring Great Change: Taking Dazhai County as the Model) was selected for the Jiangsu Provincial Peasant Painting Exhibition. His carved paper is firm on the outside and soft within, with forceful, rhythmic cuts, fine knife work and flowing lines. His subjects are wide-ranging and his ideas novel, joining traditional craft perfectly with modern popular styles. Representative works include Pu Tian Tong Qing (Universal Celebration), The Goldfish Bowl, The Great Red Lantern, Eastern Song and Dance and Ten Thousand Horses Galloping. His collaborative works The Olympic Dream, the Soul of China and From Athens to Beijing were collected respectively by the Beijing Olympic Committee and the National Art Museum of China. Within the documented technical tradition of Paper-cutting in Jintan, Jiangsu: Jintan City, Jiangsu Province, lies in the watery region of the south of the Yangtze, with simple and honest folk customs. After long development, the craft of paper carving has been continually perfected, and has become widely popular among the people of Jintan, passed down from generation to generation with far-reaching influence. The craft of Jintan paper carving mainly consists of two skills: hand drawing and openwork carving. The works are made according to the rules and requirements of paper cutting, and the carving techniques draw on the strengths of many schools, producing both fine and even lines and clear, complete compositions and forms. Jintan paper-carving products come in flexible sizes with varied carving techniques, rich and delicate expression, and fine, lush compositions; from subject matter to artistic form, they all display a strong coloration of the era. The works of Jintan paper carving display a great variety of forms, constituting a beautiful genre painting of folk life in the south of the Yangtze, and forming an extremely valuable repository of specimens for the study of folk handicraft production. Jintan paper carving is a concrete embodiment of the intelligence and talent of the Chinese people; it plays a special role in promoting the cultural identity of the Chinese nation and strengthening cultural exchange at home and abroad. The craft of Jintan paper carving consists of hand drawing and openwork carving: a draft is first made, and then the openwork is carved with a knife. The carving techniques draw on the strengths of many schools, producing both fine and even lines and clear, complete compositions and forms. The products come in flexible sizes, from small bookmarks and greeting cards to large hanging screens and long scrolls. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The twin crafts of drawing and openwork carving": Jinke carving comprises hand drawing and openwork cutting, following the rules of paper-cutting for both fine lines and complete compositions. "Door, wedding and floral tags along with lanterns": From Ming-Qing times households pasted door, wedding and floral tags with figures of the Eight Immortals and Zhong Kui, while lanterns and paper effigies used cut ornament. "Yang Zhaoqun's universal rejoicing and galloping horses": Born in 1955, Yang Zhaoqun's carving is firm without, gentle within, with works such as Universal Rejoicing and Ten Thousand Galloping Horses. "The teaching of Xia Afeng, Jiang Zhaozhi and Zhang Jigen": Yang Zhaoqun was first taught by Xia Afeng, trained under Jiang Zhaozhi in the 1960s and advised by Zhang Jigen in the 1970s.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

Representative bearer of Paper-cutting (Jintan carved paper), a third-batch national intangible cultural heritage project.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Yang Zhaoqun · National Representative Bearer Archive