As a historical cultural heritage, folk paper-cut still exists today but only in China and Mexico. It has basically disappeared from other
parts of the world. In Mexico, only the origami to worship ancestors, similar to China's Pure Brightness Day, is still popular. When I was on a research tour in France in early 1980s, the paper-cut still available there were from professional artists and art masters. The old-time widely participated folk paper-cut was all history. Among the 40 folk custom museums I visited, there were only two folk paper-cuts kept in the save at a small town museum near Orleans. They were not displayed for fear of getting damaged. The same situation was true in other countries. Paper-cut by professional artists are still around, but no more folk paper-cut. Of the four countries in the world whose civilizations date to ancient times, China is the only one that still actively practices the folk art of paper-cutting, which is now a major cultural heritage of the mankind; and its continued preservation demands urgent attention.
