Research On The Art Of Funeral Paper Offerings Of The Northern Part Of Henan Province

Originated from traditional Chinese funeral customs, Zhizha is a unique traditional folk art forms. The cultural values of its activities have been carried far beyond its own aesthetic. And as a physical manifestation of the national culture mentality, its emergence and development process is closely related to the formation of national cultural mentality. Although in most parts of China Zhizha, as a traditional funeral form, is still widely used, its living space is further reduced, or even disappear with the development of society and a wide range of cognitive obsequies. In order to protect and study this unique folk art, make this skill a reasonable inheritance, we must study the causes of it, record production techniques and analyze the problems in succession and development.Zhizha in the North of Henan province, with its uniqueness, is the representation of the traditional art form and still maintain the traditional production process and modeling style. Its unique engraving and woodblock printing techniques are rare in other regions.Therefore, this thesis is based in Zhizha in the north of Henan province. It’s completed by drawing on folk art learning methods in fieldwork through interviews with a representative Zhizha artists and their works, and participating in part of the funeral activities. The application of Zhizha in the Obsequies, the materials and tools of Zhizha, the production process of Zhizha, as well as image data appeared in the thesis, were all collected through fieldwork and first-hand information.The thesis is discussed from five aspects:In the first part, Zhizha in northern areas of Henan province is defined, compares them with those from other regions and cites the application of Zhizha in northern areas of Henan’s Obsequies activities; The second part describes in detail f production materials, tools and production processes of Zhizha in northern areas of Henan province, especially focuses on engraving and printing techniques, and summarizes the four main types of Zhizha in northern funeral; The third part is the core of this thesis, which analyzes the mentality of the national culture inherited in Zhizha, as well as its own aesthetic form of Zhizha; The fourth part lists the constraints and shackles of Zhizha in contemporary heritage and development; The fifth part is the conclusion of this thesis, and makes an outlook on future trends of Zhizha.