Chinese Cut-Paper Designs (Dover Pictorial Archive)

Chinese Cut-Paper Designs (Dover Pictorial Archive) by Menten, Theodore. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780486231983.

The motifs include real and mythical animals (pandas, tigers, dragons, deer, horses, etc.), numerous birds, flowers, fruits, butterflies, children performing everyday activities, workers, traditionally dressed men and women, the fictional character known as the Monkey King, ancient bronze ceremonial vessels, the Great Wall, lanterns, and more. In China these cutouts are pasted onto walls, windows, and other parts of houses and onto numerous smaller objects, where they serve both as ornaments and good-luck charms. Some are also used as embroidery patterns. Western artists and craftsmen who have been looking for modern Chinese motifs to use in their own work will find this book to be an excellent selection of these motifs in different subjects. All the designs can be used as is, or rearranged, combined, enlarged, reduced, changed in color, or in any way you wish.