Yang Chunzhi

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Yang Chunzhi, Female, Unspecified, from Lushi, Henan, is a third-batch national representative bearer of Paper-cutting (Ⅶ-16). The tradition is documented in Lushi, Henan. Within the regional tradition and school record of Paper-cutting in Lushi, Henan: Influenced by the cultures of the Yangtze and Yellow River basins, Lushi papercutting has formed two different stylistic features: a bold, plain aspect and a fluent, gentle aspect. Lushi papercutting is a typical representative of Lushi's folk culture. The cultural information it contains has long been absorbed into the souls of the local people, influencing every aspect of their folk life as well as their values and aesthetic orientation. In this sense, Lushi papercutting is first-hand material for understanding the thoughts, feelings and living conditions of the local people, providing an important reference for the study of Lushi's history and folk culture. Lushi County lies on the western frontier of Henan Province, in the upper reaches of the Luo River. It was established as a county in the Qin dynasty and is an important birthplace of Heluo culture. Papercutting circulated among its villages in dependence on the mountain region's seasonal festivals and its marriage, birthday and funeral rites. Lushi lies on the Henan-Shaanxi border, with high mountains, deep gullies and scattered villages. Papercutting was for a long time transmitted only within families, from mother to daughter or mother-in-law to daughter-in-law; there were no workshops or trade organisations, so the patterns of different villages were all unlike one another and individual styles stood out markedly. Yang Chunzhi, born in May 1926, learned at seven or eight from her sister-in-law, who could cut paper and appliqué flowers; by fourteen or fifteen she was already well known locally. Her window flowers of flowers and grass have simple compositions, her animal papercuts are bold and exaggerated, and her figure papercuts are natural, vivid and full of charm.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

She loved paper-cutting from childhood, learning at the age of seven or eight from her elder sister-in-law, who was skilled in paper-cutting and appliqué, and by fourteen or fifteen she was already somewhat known in her locality. Her works take their subjects from the flowers, birds, insects, fish, and figures commonly seen in daily life; their forms are exaggerated and distorted, their expressions vividly alive, and the whole simple, spirited, and full of imagination. Her flower-and-plant window decorations are spare in composition and simple in form, her animal paper-cuttings boldly exaggerated and naively free, while her figure paper-cuttings, which depict production, daily life, and scenes of play and jest, are natural and lively and brimming with charm. Within the documented technical tradition of Paper-cutting in Lushi, Henan: Lushi papercutting is popular throughout Lushi County in Henan Province and occupies a distinctive place in the folk papercutting and folk culture of Henan. Lushi County lies on the western frontier of Henan Province and is an important birthplace of Heluo culture. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Yang Chunzhi's birds, flowers and figures": Born in Lushi in 1926, Yang Chunzhi drew on everyday birds, flowers, fish and people, her forms exaggerated yet vivid and full of imagination. "The three subject types": Within her work: flower window cuttings are spare and simple, animal pieces boldly exaggerated, and figure scenes of work, daily life and play natural and lively. "Two coexisting manners": Villages preserve two manners — a bold, plain, heavy-lined one and a fluent, graceful, deftly composed one — matching Lushi's position between the Yellow River and Yangtze cultural spheres. "Household transmission in the villages": Without guilds, transmission runs mother to daughter and mother-in-law to daughter-in-law, with patterns copied between neighbours in the slack season and changing with each hand.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

Female, of the Han ethnic group, born in May 1926 and deceased in November 2010, a native of Lushi County, Henan Province. A national representative bearer of Paper-cutting (Lushi paper-cutting), 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 Chunzhi · National Representative Bearer Archive