Protection of "intangible cultural heritage" of traditional Chinese folk paper-cutting
After China’s Kun Opera and Guqin were selected into the UNESCO’s “Masterpiece” list, the Chinese government launched the “Regulations on Strengthening my country’s Intangible Culture” by the General Office of the State Council in 2004. Opinions on Heritage Protection Work" (referred to as "Opinions").
The "Opinions" pointed out: Establish a directory system and gradually form an intangible cultural heritage protection system with Chinese characteristics. Specifically, it is necessary to establish a representative list system of intangible cultural heritage. It is necessary to establish a national, provincial, municipal, and county-level intangible cultural heritage representative list system through the formulation of evaluation standards and scientific identification.
Establish a scientific and effective intangible cultural heritage inheritance mechanism. For representative works of intangible cultural heritage listed in lists at all levels, methods such as naming, granting titles, commending awards, funding and support can be adopted to encourage inheritors (groups) of representative works to carry out inheritance activities.
Extensively recruit relevant academic research institutions, colleges and universities, enterprises and institutions, social groups and other forces to jointly carry out the protection of intangible cultural heritage. Give full play to the role of experts and establish an expert consultation mechanism and inspection and supervision system for the protection of intangible cultural heritage. Strengthen the research, identification, preservation and dissemination of intangible cultural heritage. It is necessary to organize various cultural units, scientific research institutions, colleges and universities, and experts and scholars to conduct research on major theoretical and practical issues of intangible cultural heritage, and pay attention to the application of scientific research results and modern technology. Give full play to the role of public cultural institutions such as libraries, cultural centers, museums, and science and technology museums at all levels, and set up special museums or exhibition centers where conditions permit.
Local governments at all levels must strengthen leadership, include protection work on their important work agenda, incorporate it into the overall plan for national economic and social development, and incorporate it into the cultural development outline. Strengthen the construction of laws and regulations on intangible cultural heritage, and timely study and formulate relevant policies and measures. It is necessary to formulate an intangible cultural heritage protection plan to clarify the scope of protection, protection measures and objectives.
On December 23, 2005, the State Council issued the "Notice on Strengthening the Protection of Cultural Heritage", proposing that the second week of June every year be the nationalNational Cultural Heritage Day. As of June 2009, representatives of national-level intangible cultural heritage projects in the categories of folk literature, traditional music, traditional dance, traditional drama, folk art, traditional sports, entertainment and acrobatics, traditional fine arts, traditional skills, traditional medicine, and folk customs have been recognized. There are 1,483 sexual inheritors1. There are 26 inheritors of the national intangible cultural heritage folk paper-cut artists, covering 15 provinces including Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, Shaanxi, Jiangsu, Jiangsu, Hunan, Hubei, Zhejiang, Guangdong, Fujian, and Yunnan, including Manchuria , Dai, Han and other nationalities paper-cutting.
Among the 26 representative inheritors of intangible cultural heritage projects, 14 are male with an average age of 68.92 years old; 12 are female with an average age of 67.08 years old. Heirs over 60 years old account for about 73% of the total number. Compared with other inheritors, the inheritance of paper-cutting relies more on hand-eye coordination. With the aging of paper-cut inheritors, how to inherit it will become a concern. Taking into account the importance of inheritors to local culture and national culture and the promotion of intangible cultural heritage protection projects, while naming the representative inheritors of intangible cultural heritage projects, in May 2008, the state issued relevant regulations in the form of "Regulations" Management methods for inheritors. Article 12 of the "Interim Measures for the Identification and Management of Representative Inheritors of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Projects" stipulates that cultural administrative departments at all levels should respond to representative inheritors of national intangible cultural heritage projects who have difficulty in carrying out transmission activities. Provide support. The main methods of support include: (1) subsidizing inheritors’ apprenticeships or education and training activities; (2) providing necessary venues for transfer activities; (3) funding the compilation and publication of relevant technical materials; (4) providing exhibitions , publicity and other assistance that is conducive to project inheritance.
For representative inheritors of national intangible cultural heritage projects who have no source of economic income and have real difficulties in living, the local cultural administrative department should actively create conditions and encourage social organizations and individuals to provide funding to ensure their basic living needs.
The representative inheritors of national intangible cultural heritage projects shall assume the following obligations: (1) Provide complete project operating procedures, technical specifications, Raw material requirements, technical essentials, etc.; (2) Formulate project inheritance plans and specific goals and tasks, and submit them to the cultural administrative department for filing; (3) Carry out inheritance work by recruiting apprentices, running schools, etc., teach skills without reservation, and cultivate successor talents; (4) Actively participate in exhibitions, demonstrations, seminars, exchanges and other activities; (5) Regularly submit project inheritance reports to the local cultural administrative department.
In the relevant "Regulations", the responsibilities that the state and its local administrative departments need to bear can be seen from the convenient conditions provided by the state for paper-cut inheritors to pass on the tradition, funds, publicity and publishing, etc. In addition, depending on local economic conditions,Inheritors can also receive corresponding financial support. For inheritors, it is necessary to provide relevant technical essentials and adopt methods such as recruiting apprentices and running schools to pass on skills. In addition, they must actively report the corresponding inheritance situation to the local cultural department. The state is actively working hard to create good conditions for the inheritance of folk culture so that it can be accepted by more people in the social field. The states influence on folk culture and its inheritors is determined through policy regulations, which will It will promote the transformation of local culture into social public culture.
