What is papercutting?
Paper cutting is the art form of cutting paper with sharp scissors or a knife. It can be as simple or intricate as the paper artist chooses. It has definitely stood the test of time and will continue to be popular art form amongst many cultures. Many famous paper artists of the past still inspire current paper cutting practices.
history of paper cutting
Paper cutting is an art with a long history. Its first origins date back to the 4th century after the invention of the paper by the Chinese. Some of their earliest uses for paper cutting were for religious decorations or stencils used for patterns in embroidery. For a long time, this art form was popular among high-society women, but it soon spread to other classes. Paper cutting practices ranged from the skilled craftsman to its evolution into the folk art world. People displayed paper cut designs in windows, as paper lanterns, and on furniture, just to name a few.
"Papercutting or paper cutting is the art of paper designs. The art has evolved uniquely all over the world to adapt to different cultural styles. One traditional distinction most styles share in common is that the designs are cut from a single sheet of paper as opposed to multiple adjoining sheets as in collage."
Silhouette can refer to the art of cutting outlines or portraits out of black paper. Contemporary papercutting is also sometimes associated with the art of stenciling, itself being derived from techniques used in graffiti art. The use of hand-cut stencils in graffiti art has received international attention in recent years due in part to the artist Banksy.
This was my first attempt of paper cutting. I used newspaper as my background and I cut out the legs of the fashion figure.
In this I tried doing a very abstract kind of design. I cut out the paper in a abstract shape and used blue colour sheet as my background to give the effect.
reflection
I enjoyed doing paper cutting. It taught me alot about different kinds techniques and let me explore various types of paper cutting. Paper cutting can be a useful source of inspiration.
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