Xi'an: Paper-Cutting with a Shaanxi Folk Artist

Paper-cutting is the cheapest and most widespread folk art in China, and Shaanxi is one of the places where it never stopped being made. UNESCO inscribed Chinese paper-cut on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009, and the artists here are the reason the entry is not a historical footnote: they still cut for weddings, for New Year and for the tourist trade that keeps the craft solvent.

What you cut in two hours is not the point; knowing what you are cutting is. The patterns of the Guanzhong plain carry meanings - paired fish for surplus, pomegranates for sons, the door gods that used to be pasted up at New Year - and the artist will tell you which is which as she works beside you. You start with a folded square and a small pair of scissors, because symmetry forgives an unsteady hand, and end with four or five pieces in a folder.

• Chinese paper-cut, inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2009
• The Guanzhong repertoire: paired fish, pomegranates, door gods and window flowers
• Folding and symmetry first, because symmetry forgives an unsteady hand
• A traditional design to work from, cut beside the artist rather than copied from her
• Four or five pieces of your own to take away in a folder
• What each pattern means, and which ones were only ever meant for a child's pillow
• Two hours, ages 6 and up, held in a courtyard workshop near the Beilin

• Meals as listed in the daily itinerary (no meals; tea and dried fruit at the workshop)
• Private air-conditioned vehicle with professional driver throughout
• English-speaking local guide (Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian or Japanese on request)
• All entrance fees for the sites listed, including shuttle buses, eco-buses and cable cars where the site requires them
• Local handling and coordination service throughout the programme
• Bottled water (2 bottles per person per day) and audio headsets where group size requires them
• Travel accident insurance for the duration of the tour

• International air tickets and any domestic flights not listed in the itinerary
• China visa or visa-free entry documentation fees
• Meals not specified in the daily itinerary and all beverages/alcohol
• Tips for guides, drivers and hotel staff (suggested USD 8-12 per person per day)
• Personal expenses: laundry, telephone, minibar, shopping
• Optional activities and any item not listed under Price Includes
• Single-room supplement if a traveller requires a room alone
• Framing of finished pieces (about CNY 60-120 at a shop near the workshop)
• A commissioned piece by the artist, if you want one (quoted by size)

Published: October 2026 — prices and itinerary reviewed on this date; later updates are shown in the revision note below.

Please read the notes below before you book. The workshop is a ground-floor courtyard room with a large table; scissors are small and sharp, and children under eight work with a parent beside them.

Q: Is paper-cutting difficult for a beginner?
A: It is easier than it looks and harder than it seems. The first piece is a folded square cut into a symmetrical flower, which almost anyone can do in fifteen minutes and which teaches the logic of the craft: fold, cut, unfold, and the design appears. The traditional patterns take longer because they have thin bridges that must not be severed. Expect four or five finished pieces in two hours, two of which you will want to keep.

Q: What is the difference between Shaanxi paper-cut and other regions?
A: Shaanxi work is bold and figurative: large figures, thick lines, and a strong preference for narrative - a wedding procession, a farming cycle, a legend - rather than the fine geometric symmetry of Hebei or the delicate dyed work of Guangdong. The north of the province, around Ansai and Yan'an, is the best known, and the artists we work with come from that tradition even when they now live in Xi'an.

Q: Can we buy the artist's own work?
A: Yes, and it is worth doing. A framed original by a named artist runs from CNY 300 to several thousand depending on size and complexity, and the workshop keeps a folder of pieces for sale. Commissioned work takes two to four weeks. We do not take a commission on these sales; the money goes to the artist.

Q: Is this suitable for young children?
A: From six or seven, with a parent sitting beside them. The scissors are small and sharp, and the simpler patterns - a fish, a star, a rabbit - are designed for small hands. For groups with several children we bring an extra assistant so that nobody is waiting with an idle pair of scissors.

Q: Where is the workshop and how long do we need in total?
A: It is in a courtyard house a few minutes from the Beilin, inside the City Wall. Two hours is the session itself; allow two and a half with the walk in and out. The room holds up to twelve comfortably, and it is on the ground floor with a step-free entrance.

Q: Is the paper special?
A: It is xuan paper, the same absorbent mulberry paper used for calligraphy, dyed red for the traditional patterns and left plain for practice. It cuts cleanly but tears if you pull, which is the lesson. The pieces you take home are mounted on a card folder so they survive a suitcase.

Q: Do I need a visa for this?
A: Most visitors do not. China's unilateral visa-free scheme covers 50 countries for stays up to 30 days, and 240-hour visa-free transit covers 57 nationalities through 65 designated ports. Check your nationality against the National Immigration Administration list before booking flights, since the scheme is reviewed periodically.