Abstract: The subject of this article is the study of the work of the famous Chinese master of folk crafts Ku Shulan (1920-2004), which demonstrates the trends in the modern development of the Chinese folk art of paper cutting (jianzhi). Particular attention is paid to the analysis of the collage technique of Ku Shulan, the identification of its creative method, the features of the technological process, the formal-stylistic and figurative-symbolic content of the carved paintings. The paper analyzes one of the most famous works of Qu Shulan "The Goddess of Paper Cutting", which demonstrates the characteristic features of her author's style.
The key methods used in this study are historical-cultural, historical-comparative, and historical-biographical, which made it possible to show the work of Ku Shulan in the context of traditional jianzhi art. Also, to study the creative method of Ku Shulan and identify the figurative and symbolic specificity of the work under consideration, formal-stylistic and semiotic analysis was used.
The novelty of the research lies in the fact that a detailed analysis of the technological process of creating works according to the method of Ku Shulan is carried out, revealing the specifics of her work with the jianzhi technique and the creative method itself. On the basis of the traditional technique of paper cutting, Ku Shulan created her own technology – she added collage, cutting, gluing and lining, thereby opening up new opportunities for the development of the art of jianzhi. The main conclusion of the study is that in the context of modern globalization, the art of paper cutting by Ku Shulan acts as a rich source of ideas for the preservation, development and popularization of Jianzhi folk art both in China and in the world.