New Year Painting – A Unique Chinese Folk Art

New Life, New Fashion, New Year Painting

As a form of the Chinese paintings, the New Year paintings serve as a unique Chinese artistic manifestation as well as a representative Chinese folk art. The Chinese New Year paintings depict what people have seen and heard, and wish for a bumper harvest of grain and a better life, which is a well-received art. It is mainly posted during the Chinese New Year to decorate the environment and create an atmosphere, containing the meaning of New Year’s greetings, auspiciousness and celebration.

The New Year paintings originated in the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD) and have a history of more than 2,000 years. Traditional folk New Year paintings are mainly created by folk artists, reflecting people’s simple customs and beliefs. With the development of the times, more and more professional artists have joined the creative team of New Year paintings, depicting real life, enriching themes and developing new forms, and creating a number of New Year paintings that reflect the social features. New Year paintings depict the life scenarios, advocate new fashion, and introduce new aesthetic elements into the Chinese art.

The 100 New Year paintings on display demonstrate the beauty of Chinese culture from the aspects of China’s development and changes, traditional culture, rural scenery, rural revitalization, etc., aiming at sharing Chinese characteristic culture represented by New Year paintings with people from all over the world.

Part 1 Beautiful Tradition:Traditional Chinese Stories

Our Well-off Life by Guo Juan

The work depicts the Lantern Festival, people eating glutinous rice balls, watching dragon lanterns, string lanterns, dancing lions, hanging lanterns of the zodiac on the trees, and appreciating folk performances such as stilts and boats on the lake.

The Heritage of National Essence by Li Chunxiu

The work depicts the scene of children learning to sing Beijing Opera, which reflects the inheritance and promotion of the excellent traditional culture of the country.

A Mass of Blossom by Zhang Dan

The painting depicts the courtyard in a summer afternoon, where flowers are in full bloom and birds are perched on bushes, which is a peaceful and tranquil scene.

Hard-working Huayao Girls by Kun Peng

The theme of the work is Huayao ethnic group, which reproduces the traditional life scene of hardworking Huayao girls doing farm work.

Family Heirloom by Hu Guangkui

The work depicts the characters embroidering the words “virtue” and “love”, showing harmonious and happy families with kitten, chickens, red plum blossom bottles, blessings and other contents.

Happy Year of Well-off Life by Liu Laibang

The work are dominated by traditional national costumes and colorful elements, depicting a dynamic rice shopping scene during the New Year.

Full Life by Zhao Xue

The work depicts the Miao ethnic group, all dressed up and coming from all directions, showing the happy life of the Miao.

Lion Dance by Li Yue

The work is inspired by the traditional folk lion dance scene, and depicts the scene of children’s happy lion dance.

An Auspicious Kid by Shen Changbin

The work shows that traditional patterns such as Baifu, Xiangyun, lanterns, tiger heads, firecrackers and fish lanterns surround the Great Wall.

Splendid Life by Dou Yugui

In a concise and lively style, the works depict beautiful rural scenery, warm working scenes and festive celebrations, which fully reflect the characteristics of traditional folk arts and crafts.

Part 2 Beautiful Life: Stories of Life in China

Lucid Water and Lush Mountains by Gong Qinfang

The work depicts people enjoying a carefree, prosperous and healthy life in a beautiful environment.

”Rich Fish” Live a Long Life by Liu Xiaoyu

The work depicts rural children taking advantage of the rising river, putting down paper boats full of hope in the creek bay, and sailing to the distance of dreams.

Song of a Well-off Society by Zhao Xinxiao

The work aims to depict singing, laughing and dancing, and to celebrate a happy and beautiful well-off life.

Set Out for Happiness by Chen Lianxing

The work depicts the scene of riding bikes and calls on everyone to exercise.

Harvest of Five Grains by Ning Lianhui

The work shows the fruits of autumn harvest.

Full Garden in Spring by Liu Min

The work depicts the golden sunshine shining in the green courtyard, which is fragrant, pulling vines and leading vines, full and lovely. From a distance, it looks like gorgeous brocade, shining brilliantly.

Fishing Song in the Good Days by Zhao Qingling

The sky is lake, the cloud is boat, and a screen is cast to hang the golden bucket. Wandering in the clouds and walking in the sky, the fishermen laughed in the picture.

Happily Well-off by Xu Mingzhai

The work depicts the herdsmen holding up the shepherd’s whip, singing a pastoral song, herding groups of cattle and sheep, and everyone’s faces are filled with happy smiles.

Our Happy Life by Shi Feifei

The work depicts the blue-gray brick wall and stove, the yellow dining table and steamer. Mom is very busy, and the two children are happy to help.

Purple Color for a Well-off Society by Hu Chun

The work is based on purple, combined with blue, blue-purple, purple-red and other colors, which is a metaphor for auspicious arrival, meaning auspiciousness, wealth and good luck.

Fat Fish, Beautiful People by Yao Xiping

The work reproduces the harvest season, the lotus seeds are ripe, the fish are fat, and the villagers laugh. It is yet another bumper year.

Part 3 Beautiful Era: Chinese Stories in a New Era

Happy Chinese Kids by Na Xin

Each zodiac doll in the work is matched with folk toys, reflecting China’s achievements in various fields in recent years.

Well-off Youth in Four Seasons by Chen Boqing

The work uses the artistic expression technique of inverted proportion to highlight the exquisite life mood of contemporary youth.

Here Comes the Teacher by Xu Hongxia

The work depicts a group of children, accompanied by their parents, walking to smiling teachers outside the village, and bright and tidy school buses waiting for the children to come.

Five Blessings Livestreaming by Liu Liu

With the in-depth development of Internet technology, various businesses emerge one after another, and “livestreaming” has become a characteristic component of contemporary life.