Making the cut! Chinese artist creates stunning paper designs to celebrate Asian Games and National Day

« Liu Xiaying from Zhejiang gave a masterclass in traditional paper-cutting art to mark the ongoing Asian Games and the country’s National Day in Hangzhou, on Thursday.
Footage shows her drawing the mascots of the Hangzhou Games – robots Cong Cong, Lian Lian and Chen Chen – before cutting out the intricate designs.
« It usually takes a few minutes to finish the sketch, » she said. « And it won’t take long time to draw the characters. … After all these, we will cut it, which usually takes us half an hour. »
She added that getting movement into the designs was key.
« Everything needs to be connected with each other, » the artist continued. « But for some sports, like badminton, when you hit it, there will be a distance between the racket and shuttlecock. »
The masterclass aimed to unite volunteers and locals, as well as pass on and preserve traditional Chinese culture like paper-cutting.
« [Its to] make life artistic and let art come to life, » Liu Xiaying explained. « How to let our paper-cutting come closer to people’s daily lives? This is our main topic to work on. How to let young people know more about intangible cultural heritage? We have spent a lot of time and effort on it. »
She added that the combination of the sporting event and the National Day – which fell on Sunday – meant ‘doubling the happiness’. »



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