Paper cuttings
Paper cuttings are an original branch of art, many unique works of which have been created by painters, folk and other artists. Two thousand years old origins of the paper cuttings we find in the East. Silhouette paper cuttings found their way from Persia to Europe in the 17th century. Soon they spread in Spain, Denmark, France, German…
In Lithuania and Poland the art of paper cutting took a spontaneous way of development – as a branch of applied arts. Paper cuttings were especially popular in the country. Before Christmas, on wedding-party and other occasions people used to decorate their rooms, windows, lamps and frames of holy pictures with cutout starlets, flowers and blinds.
Ornamentations of perforated paper cuttings were greatly influenced by specific and compositional traditions of cloth and wood carving patterns. Paper cuttings reflected the unique character of folk art and ethnic culture of certain region.
At the second half of the 20th century paper cuttings in Lithuania started disappearing. Occasionally, they were used to decorate coffin brims, napkins in the cupboards and wardrobes. It was in the towns and cities that paper cuttings began to revive. J.Daniliauskiene brought them back from obscurity, made them serve another purpose, and thus gained lots of successors.
Now patterns and composition of paper cuttings are being developed, making use of the heritage of folk art and folklore, expressed through symbolical realities. It took three decades to form a new art of paper cuttings, very similar to graphics art and applied to new living conditions. It is pictures and post cards, exlibrises and book illustrations. Both, symmetrical and asymmetrical composition, repeated patterns and images, ornamental and philosophical reflections are characteristic of paper cuttings of Lithuania.