Introduction
The art of paper-cutting originated in China during the Han (202 BC – 220 AD), gradually maturing and becoming more refined in the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589) and finally reached full blossom in the late Qing (1644-1911). To this day, you can see splendid displays of paper-cuts in many parts of the Chinese countryside. One could say that paper-cutting is the most popular, wide-spread, and regionally varied folk art in China.
Stencil printing uses a perforated board of non-absorbent material as a matrix (such as specially treated paper or, nowadays, plastic). Images are cut into the board and then printed directly on the receiving material, usually fabric. Several layers of color separation and stencil printing are used to press images onto the fabric, creating a colorful textile. While stencil printing has a long and popular tradition in the craft of dyeing and weaving, it is rarely used in the world of art prints.
Yu Ping and Ren Ping have been paper-cut artists for many years. With a strong foundation in traditional skills, they have experimented with many innovative and creative methods. Breaking the one-color and “continuous cutting” limitations, they boldly use multiple sheets of colored paper to cut the images and layer them into a single work. Using both knife and scissors, they find simple and natural designs for their artwork. While influenced by the colors of block prints and folk embroidery, they change the depths and tones to create more vivid images. In the three areas of shape, design, and color, Yu Ping and Ren Ping have elevated paper-cuts to a new level.
By chance Yu Ping and Ren Ping encountered the folk textiles of Jiaxiang, Shandong Province, where stencil printing is still a popular method for dyeing cloth to make fabric for clothes, curtains, table cloths, etc. The stencils are made by pasting four or five sheets of paper into a pile. An image is cut into the pile, which is then waxed and dipped in tung-tree oil. The best fabric for receiving stencil printing is hand-woven cotton.
Intrigued by the similarities between color paper-cutting and folk textile printing, they turned wholeheartedly to the creation of stencil prints. Their techniques derive from folk crafts, but modified and enhanced. On the foundation of folk arts, Yu Ping and Ren Ping create their unique artistic style, producing awe-inspiring new images for their viewers.