Cuts Across Culture: Papercuts from Capital Region Artists

Papercut art is found in cultures around the world. Well known art forms include Papel Picado from Mexico, Wycinanki from Poland and Wayang Kulit from Indonesia, which uses papercut figures to create puppet shows. The earliest historical record of papercut art comes from China in the first millennium. This exhibit showcases works in the Chinese and Jewish traditions.

About the Artists:

Jianling Yue teaches Chinese language and culture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). She acquired her artistic technique during childhood in her hometown, located in Shanxi Province. For more than 20 years, Jianling has been passionately teaching Chinese language and culture, and held innumerable workshops and lectures on Chinese papercut art for all kinds of cultural activities and festivals. You can learn more about Jianling here.

Mishka Luft is a Schenectady based artist who has been practicing papercutting for over thirty years. She first learned from Yehudit Shadur, at a class held at the Schenectady JCC. Mishka is well known in the area for her work and is often sought to create art celebrating, births, bar/bat mitzvahs, weddings and other simchas (celebrations). Learn more about Mishka on her website.

The exhibit can viewed whenever the New York Folklore Shop and Gallery are open. New York Folklore is located at 129 Jay Street, Schenectady, on the Jay Street Marketplace pedestrian mall. The Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10AM to 3:30PM.  Please call 518-346-7008, email NYF at info@nyfolklore.org, or visit our web site, www.nyfolklore.org for additional information.

If you are unable to view the exhibit during regular gallery hours please contact Anne at 518-346-7008.

Funding is provided for this exhibit by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and Schenectady County Initiative Program.