New Year’s flavor from Yangliuqing

The woodcut New Year pictures of Yangliuqing also have a strong life flavor People in the Yangliuqing village and 32 villages nearby, 20 kilometers to the west of Tianjin City proper, are all engaged in making New Year pictures. The New Year pictures are a unique art form with even arrangement, forceful stokes, elegant colors and beautiful shapes.

Techniques

Traditional New Year pictures made by the block printing method are characterized by simple, clear lines, brilliant colors and scenes of prosperity. The method consists of several steps: drawing and tracing, block engraving, printing, coloring and mounting. The finished pictures, therefore, have the features of both woodcut prints and Chinese paintings, constituting a special branch in traditional folk art.

Maintaining the sincerity of traditional folk paintings,Yangliuqing pictures absorbed the characteristics of traditional Chinese “realistic” paintings and paid close attention to details of the figures.

Each picture is an independent creation. Unlike some artists, artisans of Yangliuqing New Year Woodprints must stand upright during the process and paint on “door planks.” Workshops are equipped with a row of door planks that can be opened freely called “painting doors.” Xuan paper, which contains the outline of needed patterns, is pasted on the doors as the painter stands before the drawing. It usually takes the painter three days to two weeks to complete one picture.

The coloring used the different effects of “soft colors (gentle, clear and sometimes pinkish)” and “hard colors.” The most favored colors are red, green, purple, yellow and black — which are not only bright but contrast well with one another — intended to give fresh, vivid, pleasant and inspiring impressions.