What can we do with a piece of paper? One answer is Chinese paper-cutting. To create beautiful works of paper-cutting, all we need is: a pair of scissors, a piece of paper and a pair of skillful hands.
The art of paper-cutting began after the invention of paper around 2,000 years ago. A young man wrote down the character “Fu”, and his wife tore it out, which became the predecessor (前身) of paper-cutting. In the Southern and Northern Dynasties, paper-cutting started. Since then, it has been used for centuries to decorate windows in China during the Spring Festival.
There have been many different styles of paper-cutting since ancient China. People use scissors to cut paper into various shapes. The earliest known type of paper-cutting is Tuanhua from the 1st century. Later, there were symmetrical (对称的) horses and monkeys. As skills got better, paper-cuts became more colorful and had more changed designs like famous people from stories and history, animals, and landscapes.
Paper-cuts carry people’s interests and vision of life. Each paper-cut has special meaning. It is closely related to China’s old culture and religious beliefs (宗教信仰). It includes asking for good luck, wishing for good things, and trying to stay away from bad luck. Paper-cutting has great cultural importance and shows traditional Chinese ways of thinking.
Pick up your paper and scissors, and create your own paper-cut!
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