New Year Pictures

New Year Pictures	New Year Pictures

The Chinese people have the custom of sticking up pictures to celebrate Spring Festival. This was recorded in historical works of the Song Dynasty. The custom is particularly popular in the vast countryside, where just before the festival day every household will be busy spring cleaning and pasting colorful pictures or paper cuttings on their door, windows, walls, even wardrobes and stoves.
The themes expressed in New Year pictures cover a wide range, from plump babies to the Old God of Longevity, from landscapes to birds and flowers, from the ploughing cattle in spring to rich harvests in autumn. Human figures often show artistic exaggeration, but the message in all pictures is always in the wish of the people. Usual objects in the pictures include the crane or the peach which symbolizes a long life, the plum or peony which is a mark of good fortune and happiness. The colors most favored are red, green, purple, yellow and black, intended to give fresh, vivid, pleasant and inspiring impressions.
To meet the specific needs of the vast rural population. New Year pictures are produced in all regions in China with different local characteristics. But the leading producers are at three localities: Yangliuqing Village near Tianjin, Taohuawu near Suzhou and Weifang in Shandong.