I had the honor and pleasure to learn the papel picado technique from el maestro Rene Mendoza from Huixcolotla, Puebla in 2018.  Since then, we have been collaborating and I have been able to share the lessons he gave me, with others through a handful of workshops that I have facilitated in New York.  Due to the hammering involved, the workshops become extremely loud and participants cannot speak with each other.  If you watch the video included here, you will understand why I cannot do the workshop in my apartment again.  Despite the sound, it is always a pleasure to share with others this beautiful paper cutting technique.

Papel picado, or paper cutouts, is the name of tissue paper flags traditionally chiseled into a wide range of patterns and used to decorate homes and buildings, home altars, and streets during secular and religious celebrations in Mexico.  The designs of each flag depends on the celebration and can be related to the Day of the Dead, Christmas, Independence Day, a Patron Saint, or a private party.

The origin of tissue paper or papel china, as it is known in Mexico, is China.  This particular type of paper arrived in the state of Puebla during the middle of the 19th century, when workers were obliged to buy products from the haciendas, Spanish owned estates, and amid all the available products the workers encountered, they discovered papel china.  So they began using tissue paper cutouts to decorate their celebrations.  San Salvador Huixcolotla in the state of Puebla is considered to be the cradle of papel picado.