An exhibition featuring Baotou paper-cutting opened in Baotou, Inner Mongolia autonomous region on Jan 25, attracting citywide participation, according to Baotou Evening News.

The exhibition will run until Feb 28.

Baotou paper-cutting artists demonstrated how to make paper-cuttings to the children at the exhibition.

Wang Zhaogang, one of the artists present, received a warm welcome as he taught children about paper-cutting techniques, and claimed that more people are willing to get involved in paper-cutting activities.

Paper-cutting is one of the most important folk arts in China, with a history that can be traced back to the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) when Cai Lun invented paper.

Baotou paper-cutting incorporates grassland and nomadic culture into the art form and was listed as part of China’s cultural heritage in 2010. More than 230 Baotou paper-cutting works won national and international awards, and more than 1200 have been collected by art institutions including UNESCO, the National Art Museum of China and the National Museum of China.

Paper-cutting courses were introduced to schools in Baotou in 2014, and more than 300 students have since learned the techniques used for paper-cutting.

“Children can learn more about traditional culture through paper-cutting,” said Dou Wenping, who has been teaching paper-cutting at a primary school in Baotou.

Children learn to cut paper at an exhibition in Baotou, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Jan 25, 2017. [Photo/Baotou Evening News]