Paper-cutting · Chinese Craft Stories

01 · Historical Records

Luxi lies in the middle reaches of the Yuan River in the mountainous region of western Hunan; in ancient times it belonged to Chenzhou and served as a corridor between the Miao-inhabited area and the outside world. Zaohua (chisel cutting) arose from the need for embroidery base patterns in Miao costume embroidery; because it is chiseled with a chisel knife on a wax board, it is distinguished from paper cutting done with scissors. Generations of zaohua artists made this their livelihood: shaking bell-drums in hand and carrying bamboo boxes on their shoulders, they traveled from village to village and from market fair to market fair, selling chisel-cut flowers; their footprints covered Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, and Guizhou, and Tahu Village of Heshui Town thus produced batch after batch of zaohua artists. Deng Xinglong was born in October 1949 in Luxi County; he emphasized innovation in technique and pattern, and in his figure works emphasized the expression of inner worlds and changes of emotion. While employed at the No. 2 Middle School of Luxi County, he created more than three hundred zaohua works, and in 1992 produced a large number of fine chisel-cut pieces for the county culture bureau and the county cultural center.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Tahu Village in Heshui Town, Luxi County, Hunan Province, is a "hometown of chisel-cut art"; Tahu zaohua is famed at home and abroad for its unique ethnic character, distinct artistic individuality, and exquisite craftsmanship, and has become a marvelous flower in the garden of ethnic folk arts and crafts of western Hunan. It has a long history, rich connotations, wide-ranging subjects, and diverse forms; it is the crystallization of the collective wisdom of generations of Miao people and fully reflects their spiritual pursuits and feelings. Tahu zaohua is applied not only to costume decoration but also appears widely in various sacrificial rites and wedding and funeral ceremonies in Miao areas. Influenced by Panhu totem worship and Miao shamanic spirit culture, it permeates every aspect of Miao life with a mysterious color. For a thousand years, Tahu Village of Heshui Town has produced batch after batch of zaohua artists. They have made this their livelihood generation after generation, shaking bell-drums in hand and carrying bamboo boxes on their shoulders, going from village to village and from market fair to market fair, selling chisel-cut flowers, their footsteps covering Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, and Guizhou. The art of Tahu zaohua has greatly enriched the amateur cultural life of the broad masses in Miao areas, raised their aesthetic taste, and made an important contribution to the spread and development of folk culture in the ethnic regions of southwest China.

Graver and wax board

Tahu work is graved on a wax board, several sheets stacked to produce identical patterns at once, giving even lines and clear solid-void structure unlike scissor cutting.

Bell drum and bamboo chest

The gravers' livelihood: a bell drum shaken, a bamboo chest carried, going village to village and market to market selling cut flowers across four provinces.

Panhu worship and Miao shamanism

Under Panhu totem worship and Miao spirit culture, Tahu graving served not only costume but rites of sacrifice, marriage and burial.

Embroidery patterns for costume

Used chiefly as embroidery drafts for sleeves, collars and aprons; the graved pattern is pasted to cloth and stitched, becoming the main ornament of Miao dress.

Deng Xinglong's figure graving

Born in 1949, Deng Xinglong made over three hundred works while teaching in Luxi, his figures stressing inner states; his pieces were exhibited and collected by the Hunan Provincial Mass Art Centre.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

Tahu zaohua is centered on Tahu Village, Heshui Town, Luxi County, Hunan Province; Heshui Town is called a "hometown of chisel-cut art," and its influence extends to Miao villages in the Yuan River valley and to the market fairs at the borders of Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, and Guizhou. Local zaohua, influenced by Panhu totem worship and Miao shamanic spirit culture, is used both for costume decoration and widely in sacrificial rites and wedding and funeral ceremonies, permeating every aspect of Miao life with a mysterious color.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

Today, with changes in living customs, the art of zaohua has suffered an unprecedented blow and is in an endangered state; strong protective and supportive measures are urgently needed. Deng Xinglong (recorded in the official inheritor archive): He is a member of the Hunan Provincial Folk Literature and Art Association and a director of the Paper Cutting Specialized Committee of the Hunan Provincial Mass Culture Society. He emphasized innovation in technique and pattern; his figure works focus on expressing inner worlds and changes of emotion and have considerable aesthetic value. While employed at the No. 2 Middle School of Luxi County, he created more than three hundred zaohua works. In 1992 he produced a large number of fine chisel-cut works for the county culture bureau and the county cultural center. Male, Han ethnicity, born in October 1949, died in April 2001, from Luxi County, Hunan Province. He was a representative inheritor of the third national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage project Paper Cutting (Tahu Zaohua). His works have been exhibited in China and abroad and have won prizes on many occasions; they are held in the collection of the Hunan Provincial Mass Art Museum, and some have been given as gifts to international friends.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

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

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗