Paper-cutting pioneer fuses scissors with software

At first glance, Hao Guifen's latest work looks like a high-definition oil painting.

In reality, the 67-year-old intangible cultural heritage inheritor's work is a 300-year-old craft reimagined for the 21st century.

By utilizing computer-aided layer decomposition to create 18-layer, three-dimensional paper-cuttings, Hao is elevating Yangliuqing paper-cutting to a recurring national gift on the world stage.

Yangliuqing paper-cutting was included in the second batch of Tianjin's intangible cultural heritage list in 2009.

Inside Hao's studio, the walls are filled with paper-cuttings of all sizes, featuring everything from traditional blessings and majestic landscapes to anime figures popular with younger generations.

"I focus heavily on symbolism," Hao said, pointing to a persimmon tree laden with fruit. She noted that the work represents the phrase "may everything go as wished", as the Chinese word for persimmon is a homophone for "affairs".

Turning to a layered mountain landscape, she added that the imagery symbolizes "continuous wealth and a long, flowing stream".

Some of her hanging pieces exceed 2 meters in length; with their intricate detail and rich coloration, they completely subvert traditional perceptions of the craft. Without a close look at the scissor work, they could easily be mistaken for oil paintings or delicate fine-brush artworks.

"Look at this giant panda, each color is a separate layer of paper," she said. From the lightest outer outline to the deepest black details, a single work can be built from up to 18 overlapping layers of cut paper, creating subtle light, shadow and a stunning three-dimensional effect comparable to a painting.

Behind this lies a journey of self-revolution beginning in the 1990s, when she departed from the monochromatic red window decorations traditionally associated with the craft. In her studio in Tianjin's Xiqing district, Hao systematically categorizes her evolved technical system into four distinct pillars, with multilayer and dyed paper-cutting serving as its twin peaks.

Initially relying solely on her naked eye to separate color layers, Hao found that as patterns grew more intricate, the human eye could no longer accurately distinguish the subtle color transitions.

"The more layers, the harder it is for the eye to differentiate. A younger family member helped me solve this problem using a computer," she said.