Paper was originally invented by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 AD - 220 AD) in China and it wasn't soon afterwards that paper arts became one of the main art forms. This includes paper objects used for decoration as well as items used for ceremonial purposes. Frequently, these would be made from paper money, either real or the ceremonial hell money.

Jian Zhi - The Art of Chinese Paper Cutting

Paper cutting or Jian Zhi was a very distinctive visual art of Chinese handicrafts and even in royal families ladies were also judged by the ability at paper cut. Paper arts is said to have originated from the 6th century when women used to paste golden and silver foil cuttings onto their hair at the temples, and men used them in sacred rituals. Later, they were used during festivals to decorate gates and windows. After hundreds of years of development, paper arts have become a very popular means of country folk decoration especially among women.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasty (386 - 581 A.D.), cutting out intricate patterns out of paper has become a tradition. The early practitioners of this art depicted in their paper cut creations their simple life, their aspirations and their beliefs. Favorite subjects are objects that are symbols for good fortune and happiness. These paper cutouts where used by the people to decorate their houses during festivals and even used by women as hair ornaments during the Tang Dynasty.

The Song Dynasty greatly improved the paper making process and introduced different colors of paper. The paper cut craftsmen of the time put the colored paper to good use in their paper cut outs. In the Ming and Qing Dynasty, paper cutting art reached its peak to the point that it became a required skill for women before they can get married. Subject covered in the Chinese paper cut creations also expanded to cover flora and fauna, scenes from their traditional tales and folklore and even rendering images of their famous heroes and mythical Gods.

The paper commonly used for Jian Zhi is called Xuan Paper. This paper comes from Anhui province where it is made from the fibers of a pine tree. Scissor cutting involves folding and cutting the paper and the resulting patterns are usually symmetrical due to the folds. Non-symmetrical cutouts can also be made using scissors. Chinese Paper Cut masters just wielding scissors for a tool can produce the most ornate patterns on paper. Scissor cut paper art are usually bigger in size and scale than the knife sculpted paper cuts.

Knife sculpting of paper is currently widely practiced in China. The highly skilled paper cut artists can sculpt even the thinnest and delicate lines on paper. There is a paper cut art style in China called Xi Wen style or roughly translated in English it means thin line style. Thin line paper cut artists can carve 50 lines on a square inch of paper. Once a thin line paper cut master carved out 100 flowers on a one square centimeter paper.

Various regions in China have nurtured their own styles of Jian Zhi. Some counties like Yu County in Hebei province have specialized in colored hand painted paper cut art. Each regional style has its own distinct characteristic. The Zhan Pu style of paper cutting from Fujian province even deviates in the kind of paper they use. They use a glossy paper called la guang or wax paper instead of Xuan Paper. They also have a special cutting tool called pai jian which is like a fork which can carve out hair like patterns on paper.

Paper Cutting is a tradition in China and is part of Chinese life. During festivals and holidays like the Chinese New Year, every home has to have some jian zhi adorning their walls, windows or doors. This is akin to having a Christmas tree and mistletoe at home for the Christmas holidays in the western world. Viewing items made in this method one is amazed by the true to life expressions of the figure's sentiment and appearance or the portrayal of natural plants and animals' diverse gestures. Patterns of chrysanthemum display the curling petals, pied magpies show their tiny feathers and others such as a married daughter returning to her parents' home, or young people paying a New Year call to their grandparents.

The Chinese have found hope and comfort in expressing wishes with paper cuttings. For example, for a wedding ceremony red paper cuttings are a traditional and required decoration on the tea set, the dressing table glass, and on other furniture. A big red paper character Xi for happiness is a traditional must on the newlywed's door. Upon the birthday party of a senior, the character shou represents longevity and will add delight to the whole celebration; while a pattern of plump children cuddling fish signifies that every year they will be abundant in wealth.

Zhezhi - The Art of Chinese Paper Folding

Chinese Paper Folding or Zhezhi is the art of paper folding that originated in China and is the predecessor of today's origami. In the 6th century, Buddhist monks carried paper to Japan. The first Japanese origami is dated from this period. Due to political isolation of mainland China up until the Qing Dynasty, the art has not been as thoroughly investigated compared to that of other countries, particularly Japan and the Spanish-speaking lands. The other difficulty is that paper disintegrates and dissolves far faster than other art materials like jade or stone, making historical studies difficult.

The first notable book from Japan on the subject was printed in 1797 in the Sembazuru Orikata, which translates to The Folding of 1000 Cranes. It is an indicator that other cultures have successfully adopted the art by this time. In the west, the first book on the subject came from the 1928 Fun with Paperfolding by Murray and Rigney which was reprinted by Dover publications and Houdini's Paper Magic.

Mrs. Maying Soong's 1948 book, The Art of Chinese Paper Folding, was another that popularized recreational paperfolding in the 20th century and possibly the first to distinguish the difference between Chinese versus Japanese paper folds. Where the Chinese have inanimate objects like boats or pagoda, the Japanese create living objects like the crane. It contains a number of simple traditional designs, some of which are also found in the traditions of other countries. A number of the models are folded from the blintz base. This means one begins by folding the four corners of a square to meet at the center, a form also common in traditional European and Japanese paper folding. The Old Scholar's Hat is among the old Chinese models found in this book.

The line between the Chinese and Japanese paperfolding techniques were quite blurred to begin with due to so many years of history. The arrival of Akira Yoshizawa essentially pushed the Japanese name origami into the west and the rest of the world. In China and other Chinese speaking places, the art is still referred to by the original name Zhe Zhi unchanged.

Golden Venture Folding - The story is told that a group of Chinese refugees were detained in an American prison and began making elaborate models combining traditional Chinese modular paperfolding using magazine covers and the like with a form of papier-mâché using toilet tissue. These were given as gifts to people who were of help to the refugees, and were also sold at charity fundraisers. The media coverage popularized the traditional Chinese modular folding worldwide, and became known as Golden Venture folding, named after the ship the refugees were on.

The modular folding mentioned above is often done with Chinese paper money, and is folded from numerous pieces of paper such as a 1 x 2 rectangle and half a square folded into a relatively simple triangle, and connected by inserting a flap of one triangle into a pocket on the next. Popular favorite subjects for this type folding include pineapples, swans, and ships.

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