Portraits of fortune

Li Fangfu paints on block prints in the central square of Mianzhu city.

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What distinguishes Mianzhu from the other styles is that the pictures are then handpainted. This affords artists an opportunity to use their imaginations and experience, Li explains while painting a door guardian.

"Take this guardian for example," he explains.

"I apply purple. Another artist may use red. So images created with the same printing blocks can have different colors and personalities."

But all share the same theme.

Hou Shiwu, former director of the Mianzhu Lunar New Year Block Print Museum and a well-known print artist, says: "They all reflect hopes for happiness, fortune and longevity."

Mianzhu's Lunar New Year block prints debuted during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) and flourished during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), when nearly 1,000 artists in more than 300 workshops produced as many as 12 million prints a year. The prints were sold to many parts of the country.

Part of the artistic legacy arises from Mianzhu's history as a bamboo paper-production area.

The city is named after the endemic bamboo species.

"In the Qing Dyansty, Mianzhu had more than 300 workshops that made good paper from bamboo," Hou explains.

Today, prints appear on postcards, calendars, fans and silk products.