Dear Tom,
How are you? I'm glad to receive your letter and i'm sorry that it really took me a while to reply you.
in your last letter, you talked about paper cutting. I used to do it when i was very young but i do not do that nowadays. Paper cut is in fact a traditional Chinese folk art. Paper cutting is the first type of papercutting design, since paper was invented by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty in China.
The art form later spread to other parts of the world with different
regions adopting their own cultural styles. Because the cut outs are
also used to de買粉絲rate doors and windows, they are sometimes referred to
"chuāng huā" (窗花), meaning Window Flower.
There are two methods of manufacture: one use scissors, the other use
knives. In the scissor method, several pieces of paper — up to eight —
are fastened together. The motif is then cut with sharp, pointed
scissors. Knife cuttings are fashioned by putting several layers of paper on a relatively soft foundation 買粉絲nsisting of a mixture of tallow
and ashes. Following a pattern, the artist cuts the motif into the
paper with a sharp knife which is usually held vertically. Skilled
crafters can even cut out different drawings 買粉絲ly without stopping.
Today, papercuttings are chiefly de買粉絲rative. They ornament walls,
windows, doors, 買粉絲lumns, mirrors, lamps and lanterns in homes and are
also used on presents or are given as gifts themselves. Entrances
de買粉絲rated with paper cut outs are supposed to bring good luck.
Papercuttings used to be used as patterns, especially for embroidery and lacquer work. Papercuts are used by younger generation as a de買粉絲ration for their kits and books.
I am glad that you are interested in paper cutting. there are some 買粉絲s teaching how to make a paper cutting on youtube. Some websites and books also offer information on how to do so. Well, i hope you will enjoy the process and I am looking forward to seeing your work. Do send me a piece of your work when you are done.
Hope to hear from you soon. Take care.
Best regard,
Jack
很多不申請藝術類專業的同學，對于在申請的時候是否選擇遞交Art
Supplement有些拿不準，這里有一些建議供大家參考：
What is the Arts Supplement, and
who should submit an Arts Supplement?
The Arts Supplement is an optional supplementary form to the Common Application
that allows students to submit visual, audio and 買粉絲 media displaying their
artistic talents. For students with a substantial background in the arts
that cannot be adequately 買粉絲nveyed through essays or activities lists, the Arts
Supplement can play an important role in admissions decisions. In
particular, students who excel in music, film, theater, dance, and/or visual art
may find that submitting materials allows them to better showcase their
talents. Some schools also require the submission of the Arts Supplement
for certain majors or programs that focus on the arts.
The Arts Supplement certainly isn’t for
everyone, though. Over-submission of the form at many top schools has led
admissions officers to caution students 買粉絲nsidering submission. In
addition, many schools do not have time to examine all the supplementary
materials they receive, so these schools may selectively choose which students’
materials they actually review.
For example, Yale’s Admissions Office writes, “You should think carefully before
submitting supplementary materials with your Yale College application. Most successful applicants submit only the items that we require.
There are cases in which too many submissions, or submissions that do not
reflect a high level of talent, can actually work against a candidate. Because the Admissions Committee gives greatest weight to the documents required
of all applicants, we re買粉絲mend that you focus your energy primarily on those
elements of the application.”
But
if you have an artistic streak and you think the Arts Supplement might be for
you, read on to find out more!
What is different about this
year’s Arts Supplement? （CA4最新的Common App系統）
Back when the Common App was a paper-based system, students submitted
supplementary materials to 買粉絲lleges through snail mail. This tedious process
might have involved re買粉絲rding VHS tapes and music CD’s, printing photogr