Gao Fenglian, deeply affected by her family traditions, has loved paper cutting since she was a little girl. She feels most comfortable with scissors and paper in hand. Even in her toughest year financially, she continued paper cutting to express her emotions and make a modest living.

In modern-day China, many people move out of the rural areas to big cities, find other forms of entertainment, and forget the art of paper cutting. But Gao remains unmoved. She never forced her children to learn paper cutting, but they are under the influence of her spirit and the beauty of this art.

The 2014 Smithsonian Folklife Festival hosted three generations of paper cutters from Shaanxi Province, China. Gao Fenglian shares her passion for the fading art form, which she passed onto daughter Liu Jieqiong and granddaughter Fan Rongrong.

Videography: Josh Eli Cogan, Nicholas Mangialardi
Interview: Shiyu Wang
Editing and text: Chuyin Tian