The yin and yang culture in Chinese folk paper-cutting
In modern and feudal societies, the concept of yin and yang expressed in the minds of working people is deeply rooted. This concept of yin and yang is the experience and understanding of working people in social practice. It is the basis of the traditional yin and yang philosophical thought and is deeply influenced by this thought. Mr. Jin Zhilin, based on the rich and colorful yin and yang concept relics in folk life customs and culture and art, combined with archeology and unearthed cultural relics, ancient literature and paleography, pointed out that the yin and yang thought already existed in primitive society, and believed that the yin and yang thought was developed by men and women. The basic concept of intercourse originated. Recently, some people have argued that the concept of yin and yang was expressed in the Shang Dynasty based on the principle of "strength in external affairs and softness in internal affairs" established in the "Book of Rites". Many folklore images in the Shang Dynasty contain the correlation between yin and yang and the five elements. principle. This argument is consistent with Mr. Jin Zhilin’s inference about the period when Yin and Yang thought came into being. From the above we can see that the concept of yin and yang is closely related to folk life, and this connection is reflected in the influence of the concept of yin and yang on many matters in folk life. This influence still exists in modern rural areas, even in developed cities like Beijing and Shanghai. Choosing an even-numbered "good" day to get married, giving "even" numbers to give gifts, and not waiting until noon for "gifts" are all remnants of this concept. The influence of the concept of yin and yang on folk life and folk thinking is also reflected in Chinese folk paper-cutting, such as hand-holding dolls, bun dolls, and yin-yang gossip fish in Chinese folk paper-cutting patterns. It directly expresses the concept of yin and yang and the five elements. In addition, the paper-cut patterns related to reproduction are also directly related to the concept of yin and yang. For example: "Danfeng Chaoyang", "Fish Diamond Lotus", "Golden Pheasant Exploring Lotus", "Fish Lying on Lotus", "Mouse Eating Cabbage", "Lion Rolling Hydrangea", etc. are all continuations of the "Yin Yang" model. It does not reflect the phenomenon of natural life but expresses the reproduction of life with the nature of the intersection of yin and yang; it expresses the national spirit of eternal life, the intersection of yin and yang, the transformation of all things, and the endless growth of all things. Jin Zhilin has made a detailed discussion in "On the Philosophical System of Chinese Folk Art". In addition to the yin and yang ideological content expressed in folk paper-cutting, here we will only talk about its artistic form.
The folk understanding of yin and yang is concrete and figurative, thinking that "bright" is yang and "dark" is yin. In the early 1960s, when some painters used charcoal powder to paint portraits of farmers, the farmers objected if they painted light and dark faces, saying that it was unlucky to paint a yin and yang face. Due to the idea that dark is yin, in terms of color aesthetics, the use of black in festive activities is rejected. Except for necessary couplets, which must be written in ink, festive supplies do not need to be black. With the convenient advertising colors and gold, black has gradually been eliminated from the couplets. Folk paper-cutting is mainly used in folk life to express positive emotions and wishes in a warm and festive atmosphere. Even the paper-cutting used for individual funerals does not need to be black, so when folk talk about paper-cutting, there is no "black and white contrast". The concept of "black and white contrast" imposes terms such as black and white woodcut on the folk paper-cut art. If you tell a rural lady that the red paper pattern she cut is "black" and the "emptiness" is "white", she will not understand. How can the red paper be black? Some people may say that this is an analogy, but this analogy inappropriate. Regarding paper-cutting, they only talk about yin and yang, which is a reflection of the concept of yin and yang in the thinking and understanding of working people. The patterned paper shape is yang, and the hollowed out area is yin. The protruding ones are yang, and the concave ones are yin. This is another form of yin and yang in their understanding. This understanding is based on peoples own experience and the relationship between yin and yang. The two manifestations of the concept of yin and yang in the thinking of working people have a great impact on the artistic expression of Chinese folk paper-cutting. The main objects in traditional paper-cut patterns are generally represented by positive figures, and the negative figures are only used as foils. Yin pictures are only used when expressing something unknowable, mysterious and potential or when specifically emphasizing a certain negative thing. There is no technique that uses negative pictures as the main form of expression. The technique of using negative pictures as the form of expression appeared relatively late in folk paper-cutting. This article will talk about it in another article in "The Impact of Commercialization on the Complete Collection of Folk Paper-cut Patterns". "Pisces Doll Pattern" appears to be represented by Yang pictures, but in fact it is supplemented by Yin pictures. The cutout below the belly of a girl represents the female babys lower body in the form of a negative figure. Two fishes are cut out with their mouths facing each other here to express the theme of reproduction. The lotus on the belly uses analogy to strengthen the theme of "fish playing with lotus". If the thoughts of the skillful hands are ignored, this paper-cutting The tricks can only be an art form expression of "more than enough year after year". In "Two Birds Playing with Toads", the masculine bird is the yang picture, and the feminine toad is the yin picture. The three birds in the picture are more interesting. Although the three birds are all represented by positive figures, the roosters modeling paper lines are thicker and thicker than those of the hen.The decorative pattern has a stronger sense of positive patterns. In comparison, the hen figure is visually reversed toward the negative figure. The feathers on the roosters neck are made of rigid zigzag patterns, while the feathers of the hens neck are made of flexible "cloud and water patterns". The chick cut out on the side points out the folk understanding of the compatibility of yin and yang. Another manifestation of the concept of yin and yang in the folk is that "inside" and "inside" are yin, and "outside" and "outside" are yang. In folk paper-cutting, "inside" and "inside" are often represented as yin pictures, and "outside" "Exhibition" is mostly represented by Yang diagram. This kind of theory
