Paper-cutting · Chinese Craft Stories

01 · Historical Records

Guangling dyed paper cutting has a long history; according to research, it already took embryonic shape in the early Tang dynasty, developed a distinctive style by the Ming dynasty, and has been handed down to the present day.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Guangling County, which belongs to Datong City in northeastern Shanxi Province, has long been praised as the “Pearl Beyond the Great Wall”; Guangling dyed paper cutting stands in a class of its own with its brilliant colors, vivid forms, slender lines, expressive power, and fine knife work. Guangling dyed paper cutting is made chiefly by a knife-cutting and dyeing technique, passing through numerous process steps such as designing the pattern, smoking the template, cutting, trimming, and dyeing. By form of expression it can be divided into positive-line cutting, negative-line cutting, folded, dyed, multi-color, washed-color, and monochrome types. Guangling dyed paper cutting covers a wide range of subjects: the twelve zodiac animals, flowers, birds, fish and insects, opera masks, myths and legends, modern figures, natural scenery, cultural landscapes, and scenes of labor and life — rich, detailed, and all-inclusive. Guangling dyed paper cutting was founded by the Zhang family and has now been passed down to the fourth generation. This distinctively local paper cutting is exacting in its dyeing and lifelike in its representation, with unique production methods and materials; it has made an important contribution to enriching and refining the art of Chinese folk paper cutting. The process of Guangling dyed paper cutting is fairly involved: first the pattern is designed, then a smoked sample is used to obtain the base draft; next a knife is used to cut through xuan paper; then dyestuffs are applied dot by dot, layer upon layer, and where necessary multi-color or washed-color techniques are added. Cutting and dyeing are carried out separately; the dyeing proceeds from light to dark in successive layers, so that the colors of the picture are bright without becoming muddy.

Archival Records of Process Steps

Guangling dyed paper cutting is made chiefly by a knife-cutting and dyeing technique, passing through numerous process steps such as designing the pattern, smoking the template, cutting, trimming, and dyeing. By form of expression it can be divided into positive-line cutting, negative-line cutting, folded, dyed, multi-color, washed-color, and monochrome types.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

In local towns and villages, Guangling dyed paper cutting has become an indispensable interior decoration; people use it to adorn doors, windows, walls, and furniture, expressing their hopes for a better life. Guangling County is located in northeastern Shanxi Province, under the jurisdiction of Datong City, and has long been called the “Pearl Beyond the Great Wall.” Local people use the largest quantities of paper cutting at New Year festivals and weddings; the works are mostly made by family workshops and, apart from home use, are sold in neighboring counties.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

At present, the transmission and development of Guangling dyed paper cutting face a number of thorny problems. First, older paper-cutting artists of deep attainment have passed away one after another, and those still living are advanced in years, so that certain unique skills cannot be passed on normally, while outstanding young successors can be counted on one's fingers. Second, Guangling dyed paper cutting is mostly made by household labor, and the products are monotonous and crude, with little artistic quality, making it hard for the craft to grow. Third, with the line of succession broken, fewer and fewer people practice it, and the development of the paper-cutting cause advances only with difficulty. It is therefore clear that protecting and rescuing Guangling dyed paper cutting has become a task that brooks no delay, and the relevant authorities should set to work as soon as possible. Guangling dyed paper cutting and the neighboring Yu County paper cutting of Hebei Province both belong to the dyed paper cutting tradition; the two are similar and different in their knife work and coloring, and together form the distribution area of folk dyed paper cutting in northern Shanxi and Hebei.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Paper-cutting (Guangling, Shanxi) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗