Russian students experience paper-cutting magic in Heilongjiang

In celebration of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Russia, a group of international students from Russia recently experienced the charm of traditional Chinese paper-cutting in Harbin, Heilongjiang province.

Students from Northeast Forestry University and Harbin Medical University were invited to learn the skills of Ni Xiumei, a national intangible cultural inheritor of paper-cutting, together with Chinese students at Heilongjiang College of Performing Art. The activity was part of Heilongjiang's second China-Russia Culture and Art Season.

At the event, Ni demonstrated paper-cutting skills to the students and explained the cultural significance behind them.

The students were amazed by the magic of paper-cutting and created their own artworks, including vivid animals and fruits.

"I had seen the paper-cutting works of Heilongjiang at the international cultural festival heritage exhibition at our university before," said Bystrova Anastasiia, a doctoral student from Northeast Forestry University. "It's so meaningful to have the opportunity to understand Chinese traditional paper-cutting art with my classmates and to try it myself."