Paper-cutting Exhibition of “Thousand Lions in China” opened at Shandong Provincial Cultural Centre. It was hosted by Shandong Provincial Cultural Centre, Shandong Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center and Shandong Provincial Association of Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection, and organized by Jinan Provincial Association of Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection and Jinan Institute of Paper-cutting Arts.

The exhibition features a 40-meter-long paper-cut scroll titled “Hundred Lions” and four volumes of 41-meter-long paper-cuts titled “Thousand Lions in China” as well as the widely acclaimed “Hundred Bats” (homophone of “plenty of happiness” in Chinese) and “Land of Fortune”.

“Thousand Lions in China” is presented on both sides of the paper and folds into a bound volume. Su Yanru, an inheritor of paper-cutting craft in Jinan, spent seven years collecting the images and cutting 800 lions on paper. He traversed 82 cities across China and collected over 440 pairs of stone lion images, of which 400 pairs were adopted. In the exhibited pages, lions appear in pairs, with a lion on the left pinning a hydrangea ball under the right forepaw, and a lioness on the right caressing a young lion with the left forepaw. Either yin cut or yang cut (“yin” refers to the technique of highlighting the contours of each pattern from within and resulting in comparatively rougher lines and designs; “yang” is characterized by its delicate details by keeping all the pattern outlines as if in engraving) is adopted for each pair, depending on their shape and character, to recreate the verve and overall image of lion pairs from scenic spots across the country.

This exhibition shows Chinese stone lion culture and paper-cutting art in a comprehensive manner. Stone lions carved by skilled craftsmen throughout Chinese dynasties are reproduced with exquisite paper-cutting skills, demonstrating distinctive regional and historical characteristics and overwhelming artistic appeal.