Cutting Through Silence: Women's Voices in the Art of Chinese Papercutting

Abstract

This paper explores the journey of Chinese papercutting, also known as jianzhi. It has evolved from a traditional craft for women into a modern form of artistic expression and female empowerment. Historically, papercutting was part of what was known as nühong (women's work). This art form gave women a way to be creative and also helped them navigate their expected social roles, which were often anonymous and practical. An examination of this tradition demonstrates how artists occupied the space between collective creation and social norms that desecrated it; and this was juxtaposed to cultural conventions of high (male-dominated) "mainstream" art forms like literati painting. The case study focussed on a "baby" motif called zhuaji, when viewed through this lens of traditional practice, shows how even the most traditional forms served to reinforce, whilst gently subverting patriarchal views and practices. From this consideration of traditional papercutting practice in China, the subsequent examination shifts to examine how contemporary artists like Bovey Lee are reclaiming this "craft" to address contemporary identities, movements, and feminist critiques. Ultimately, the paper argues that papercutting offers an integral and powerful language for female expression as it continues a journey from muted, complicit to vocally challenging practices in the agential world of global art.