Hengdong Bridge Paper-cutting—the pride of Hengdong, the hometown of paper-cutting
Due to its large geographical span, China has a very high level of cultural diversity. The artistic creations precipitated by the unique cultures of various places have their own styles. When talking about paper-cutting, we must mention the Hengdong Bridge paper-cutting. In recent years, as Chinese paper-cutting has entered the world, Hengdong Bridge paper-cutting has gradually appeared in peoples realizations. The Hengdong Bridge paper-cutting with superb skills and fine cutting methods immediately conquered many paper-cutting enthusiasts and researchers. This also makes us pay more attention to the paper-cutting of Hengdong Bridge.
Hengdong folk paper-cutting is rich in content, with various patterns and a wide range of themes. Most of them are full of festive and peaceful atmosphere. For wedding celebrations, both men and women should invite skilled craftsmen or cut out a colorful world of "hundred years of reconciliation" by themselves: " The door flowers of "Mandarin ducks playing in the water", the window flowers of "Butterflies flying together", the cabinet flowers of "Flowers are blooming and the moon is full", the hall flowers of "dragons and phoenixes are auspicious", the bed flowers of "Kilin sending children", the quilt flowers of "Lotus blooming with both stems", "Spring Breeze Proud" Mirror Flowers... Cabinets, bathtubs, buckets, chairs and tables, and other objects must be decorated with auspicious paper-cut works.
Hengdong paper-cut "Shigu Academy"/by Liu Weinan
In the world of Hengdong paper-cutting art, the paper-cutting of farmers in Daqiao is the most famous and has won many awards. It is a famous hometown of paper-cutting. From 1981 to 1991, Daqiao’s paper-cutting has participated in many exhibitions, and the Ministry of Culture has Experts and scholars said with emotion after watching: "The folk paper-cutting in Daqiao Township is a great pride of the cultural front!"
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Hengyang paper-cutting artist——Liu Weinan
Source: Shigu Culture Author: Zhang Wenkai
The emergence of paper-cutting has a history of at least 1,500 years. The simple and simple shape contains rich folk customs and life connotations. Will this river of living culture, which has been passed down orally and taught for thousands of years, stop flowing in our hands?
Paper cutting? I can do it too!
Those who know me well will be shocked after hearing this.
My grandmother was a woman with small feet who grew up reading the "Three Character Classic". When my sister and I were eight or nine years old, she trained us to sit, stand and walk, and taught us embroidery, paper-cutting, and shoe drawing. She said that it is most important for girls to learn to be female celebrities, otherwise they will not be able to get married when they grow up. However, I have only scratched the surface.
Paper-cutting was once a compulsory course for Chinese women. They have learned paper-cutting from their mothers since they were young, not for art, but for life. Later, paper-cutting gradually entered the "hall" and developed into a craft for folk artists to make a living.
But now this folk skill, which seems "easy to learn but difficult to master", is disappearing rapidly. Daqiao Town in Hengdong County and Banqiao Town in Changning County were named the "Hometown of Paper-cutting Art" by the Ministry of Culture, and they have gone back three hundred years. After many kilometers, I interviewed a local folk artist, and all I heard was that "the weather is cool and its autumn."
Hengdong paper-cut "Dragon and Tiger Leaping"/by Liu Weinan
Paper-cutting—Liu Weinan’s spiritual coat
The folk paper-cutting art of Daqiao Town originated during the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty and has a history of 500 years.
There is a custom in Daqiao Town that paper-cut flowers with auspicious meanings are affixed during festivals, birthdays, and housewarming celebrations. Especially during weddings and celebrations, door flowers with "mandarin ducks playing in the water", window flowers with "pink butterflies flying together", "dragon and phoenix" "Chengxiang" hall flower, "Kilin sending children" bed flower, "Huahaohaoyueyue""Case flowers are all available. This custom has continued. Now there are 20 villages in the town, and nearly half of them still have people doing paper-cutting.
71-year-old Liu Weinan is a leader in paper-cutting in Daqiao Town, and his family has already moved to the county seat. For most of 2005, he hid back in his hometown to write a Huagu Opera script, "Staying there alone, quiet." In order to live independently, the old man went to Hengyang to attend a chef training class. "Before, everything at home was... I eat ready-made food and don’t know how to cook it. Now, my cooking skills are very good."
After walking about a mile on the muddy field ridge holding an umbrella, I met Liu Weinan in a two-story mud-tile house. The old mans authentic Beijing accent surprised me: "Are you really a local?"
"It is said that Beijing accent should not be used against fellow villagers, and local donkeys do not bray like foreign horses, but I like to speak Mandarin very much. After returning from the army, I have always insisted on learning and thinking in Mandarin, and I especially like people who speak Mandarin. Regarding this, everyone It was quite unacceptable, so I spoke Mandarin when I went out and the local dialect when I entered the house."
"I am a very strange person." The old man shook his head. In order to be able to go to college, Liu Weinan, who was already an officer, strongly requested the commander to demobilize him and return to his hometown. In 1959, he was admitted to the Department of Drama and Literature of the Shanghai Theater Academy. "The physical examination turned out to be tuberculosis, and I almost committed suicide."
Hengdong paper-cutting "The Maid"/by Liu Weinan
He can do shadow puppetry, tailoring, and physical work such as masonry, carpentry, and blacksmithing. After 1974, he worked as a private teacher for 9 years. Liu Weinan wanted to get involved in all seventy-two lines, not for life, but to fulfill his dream of being a writer.
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