As Spring Festival nears, many Chinese homes are once again filled with chuanghua – window blossoms, or window paper-cuts – intricate designs pasted on panes to welcome the New Year.

Chinese paper-cutting is a centuries-old folk art that became especially popular for festive decorations. Traditionally made from red paper – a color associated with luck – and cut by hand, these patterns symbolize hopes for good fortune, happiness and blessings in the year ahead.

For the Year of the Horse, fourth-generation artist Zhang Weisheng has created four horse-themed window blossoms, each carrying a unique symbolic wish.