New Year paintings: Unique folk art in Shandong

Linqu's hand-painted New Year paintings boast vivid colors and festive themes. [Photo by Wang Ying for chinadaily.com.cn]

Hand-painted New Year paintings, or nianhua, are a distinctive folk art in Linqu county – located in Weifang city, in East China's Shandong province.

They originated from ancient paintings of gods that were used to decorate doors and rooms for blessings and good fortune.

They have a long history of inheritance and development and have formed a unique artistic style that reflects the local culture and the times.

The paintings are purely hand-made, with vivid colors, exaggerated shapes and festive themes. They reflect the aesthetic tastes of locals, their personal emotional needs, and their hopes for the future. They are also influenced by other folk arts such as paper-cutting, straw weaving, embroidery and cloth art.

Linqu's hand-painted New Year painting was selected as a provincial intangible cultural heritage item in 2016. The county culture and tourism department has undertaken various measures to protect and promote this treasured folk art – such as establishing research, training, and exhibition centers and organizing talent cultivation and works exchange activities.

At present, there are more than 200 hand-painted New Year painting artists in Linqu, who have produced more than 500 works. Some of the works have won awards in provincial and national exhibitions, helping Linqu's hand-painted New Year paintings gain popularity and recognition across the country and internationally. (Edited by Fan Yuanyuan)