As we all know, Mao Zedong's poetry and calligraphy are mainly based on grass, with a pen that is wanton, imposing like a rainbow, and indulgent and unrestrained, showing the arrogance and domineering spirit of a generation of great people who look at the world and lead the way. Calligraphy enthusiasts recognize that the hair body is unique and difficult to copy.
However, Zhang Yiqing, a paper-cutting artist in Huichang County, Ganzhou City, Jiangxi Province, boldly innovated, using carving knives and scissors as pens to reproduce the style of Mao Zedong's poetry through paper-cutting techniques. After more than ten years of continuous pondering and repeated practice, she successfully cut more than 20 poems such as Mao Zedong's "Qingping Le Huichang", "Qinyuan Chunxue", "Xijiangyue Jinggangshan" and so on.
Zhang Yiqing's poem "Qing Ping Le Huichang"
Zhang Yiqing began to learn paper cutting with his grandfather at the age of 3. Her grandfather was a well-known carpenter who was particularly good at carving. Whenever my grandfather carved, she would gather around the front and back, watch excitedly, and keep asking this and that. My grandfather saw that she was interested, but she was too young to make woodcuts, so he taught her how to cut flowers, birds, insects and fish out of paper. Since then, she has been fascinated by paper-cutting, and paper-cutting has become her lifelong hobby.
Paper-cutting requires patience, is a meticulous job, and can cultivate temperament.
After his grandfather's death, Zhang Yiqing, who had just joined the work, began to try to integrate his grandfather's carving knife skills with paper-cutting skills while remembering his voice and smile. After countless times of practice failure, practice and failure, slowly under her carving knife and scissors, a lifelike Meilan bamboo chrysanthemum and a skillful pavilion were born.
Meilan bamboo chrysanthemum is Zhang Yiqing's favorite paper-cutting theme
Zhang Yiqing believes that paper cutting is a kind of enjoyment. She said, "Her eyes stared at the pattern, and she cut it for a moment, as if she had cut out the words in her heart, and the slight sound that came from the reaming paper was like a beautiful piece of music." ”
Huichang is an old revolutionary area where "two generations of great men laid the foundation and revolutionary martyrs gathered", where Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and seven of the ten founding marshals all worked and fought, leaving behind many stories of the popular population. Zhang Yiqing has been influenced by red culture since childhood, and with the increase of age, the improvement of the level of cutting, and the improvement of her vision, she came up with the bold idea of cutting and engraving Mao Zedong's poem "Qingping Le Huichang", hoping to let more people know the hometown that was praised by the great people as "the only good on this side of the scenery" - Huichang.
"Jiangxi scenery is good, the only good is in Huichang" paper-cutting
In order to better display the charm of calligraphy, Zhang Yiqing humbly asked artists in the fields of calligraphy, painting and sculpture for advice. In the continuous learning and discussion and exchange and collision, she has a new understanding of the art of paper-cutting, and her calligraphy paper-cutting is becoming more and more realistic and expressive, with a bit of pride and charm of the hairy body. Now that she is famous in Huichang, many calligraphers have exchanged their calligraphy works with her to exchange "calligraphy" paper cuts.
She has participated in cultural fairs held by provinces and cities for many times and won awards, and has become a leader in the paper-cutting industry in Jiangxi. In addition to being a member of the China Folk Writers Association and the Paper-cutting Art Committee of the Chinese Culture Promotion Association, Zhang Yiqing also has a more important identity - the inheritor of municipal intangible cultural heritage, and undertakes the heavy responsibility of carrying forward the "Huichang Paper-cutting".
Zhang Yiqing did not pass on a skill to her son and daughter-in-law, she chose Li Huilin of the Huichang County Education and Sports Bureau, who has a foundation in oil painting, to teach her paper-cutting skills. Happily, the two teachers and apprentices have been teaching each other and constantly innovating, and she has introduced the color of oil paintings into paper-cutting and produced new works that reflect the unique culture of the She ethnic group in Dongtou Township, Huichang County.
Chromatic paper-cut works - the unique phoenix totem of the She ethnic group in Dongtou Township, Huichang County
Zhang Yiqing also led the apprentices into the Huichang County Special Education School and gave two free paper-cutting lessons to 22 deaf and mute students once a week.
Zhang Yiqing teaches students to cut paper at Huichang Special School
Author: Ren Weilao
The image of this article is provided by Li Huilin