Shandong's Juye paints a brighter future for local villagers

During the cold winter season, villagers in Haozhuang village, Dushan town in Shandong's Juye, create peony paintings at calligraphy and painting studio. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

During the cold winter season, villagers in Haozhuang village, Dushan town in Shandong's Juye, are busy creating detailed peony paintings at a calligraphy and painting studio.

After receiving training and guidance through multiple levels of public welfare classes, Wang Yujie, a local villager, has mastered the basics of detailed peony painting.

In 2023, Dushan town planned and constructed the Jinshan Calligraphy and Painting Studio and a village-level calligraphy and painting studio, both of which focus on training impoverished households, disabled individuals, and "left-behind" women in the area.

They have specially hired experts on painting in detail to oversee student development and operational management. Through the provincial-level key rural tourism village, they established a peony and peony root sketching center, providing painting supplies such as easels, brushes, paper, and paint free of charge for artists and students, creating favorable conditions for training and teaching.

By 2024, the comprehensive annual output value of detailed peony painting in the entire village reached 2 million yuan ($274,524), with farmer artists earning an average additional income of over 50,000 yuan per year, which has explored a new way for farmers to increase income and become prosperous.

As a renowned homeland of Chinese farmer paintings and homeland of Chinese detailed paintings, Juye county actively explores its unique resources and advantages to develop calligraphy and painting as a distinctive industry tailored to local conditions. This allows residents to earn some extra income, letting this iconic industry support beautiful rural areas. (Edited by Xie Zhenzhen)