Paper-cut master slices living from silhouettes

The Chinese-Baroque Historic and Cultural Block in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, has been welcoming waves of tourists recently.

Many of the visitors are drawn to 65-year-old Wang Chuncai's paper-cut silhouette stall, where his scissors slice through black paper to fashion vivid, lifelike silhouettes of his customers in less than a minute.

Wang's entire setup consists of sheets of paper, a pair of scissors and a few sample works. For over four decades, he has wielded his scissors to create hundreds of thousands of silhouettes of strangers, with each cut capturing a moment in time and etching his life's journey as he preserves a traditional craft on the brink of fading away.

His initial encounter with the art of silhouette cutting occurred in October of 1985, he said. While visiting the bank of the Songhua River, he noticed a stall surrounded by a crowd.

Wang squeezed through the crowd and was instantly captivated by an artisan who was using only a small pair of scissors to skillfully cut into black paper. In just a few seconds, a striking silhouette portrait was completed, with precise and expressive features.

"I was completely amazed at the time," Wang said. "I never imagined that a pair of scissors and a piece of paper could create such a lifelike image. It was magical."

At that moment, the desire to learn the craft of silhouette cutting took root in his mind.

Without a mentor or professional materials, Wang embarked on a self-taught journey. He studied his own profile in front of the mirror, memorizing the features of facial lines. During work breaks and rest time, his colleagues, family members and neighbors became his practical subjects.

"The path of learning is never easy, and only I know the hardship I've endured," he said. "I always believe that quantitative accumulation leads to qualitative change."