Yangliuqing New Year Pictures

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Yangliuqing New Year Pictures were named after the town of Yangliuqing in Tianjin. Initiated between 1628 to 1644, the town's New Year Pictures production became famous for over 300 years. It reached a peak during the first half of the 18th century to the second half of the 19th century. More than 20,000,000 pieces were made and printed annually from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. The most exquisite were presented to the court as tribute. Local peasants were engaged in making New Year Pictures throughout most of the year; each family became good at dyeing and clever at painting.

Although Yangliuqing New Year Pictures are considered folk handicraft, they indeed possess much potential as high art. Deeply influenced by Chinese traditional painting skills and not only picking up technologies of wood engraving from the art academies of the Qing Dynasty (1616-1911) but also from a European perspective, they gradually developed an exquisite and elegant style appealing to the tastes of all kinds of people, with well-rounded drawings and vivid and harmonious colors. Yangliuqing New Year Pictures covered a wide variety of subject matter, including Door Gods, cute babies and beauties, folklore, mythology, local opera characters, mountains and waters, birds and flowers, and anything one could wish for.