A New Year graphic is an important and popular Banhua (wood painting) which is one of the Chinese folk arts. Mianzhu in Sichuan, Yangliuqing in Tianjin, Weifang in Shandong and Taohuawu in Suzhou are the four cities known for woodcut New Year pictures. The producing of a New Year painting include at least five processes of drawing, carving, printing, painting and mounting and could take more than a month to finish.
Customarily, as Chinese New Year arrives, every family pinned up New Year paintings on doors, room walls and windows to say goodbye to the past and welcome the future. It is believed that the pictures can invite heavenly blessings and ward off disasters and evil spirits. The central subject of New Year's Painting is closely associated to Chinese tales, legends, classic novels, religions, people's wishes and the language. Its original form was a picture of a door god fashioned in the Qin Dynasty. Later, more subjects, such as the Kitchen God, God of Longevity, God of Wealth and babies were included. Images like fish, bats and fans are also common in New Years pictures for the similar pronunciation they share with the good words in Chinese language.
Customarily, as Chinese New Year arrives, every family pinned up New Year paintings on doors, room walls and windows to say goodbye to the past and welcome the future. It is believed that the pictures can invite heavenly blessings and ward off disasters and evil spirits. The central subject of New Year's Painting is closely associated to Chinese tales, legends, classic novels, religions, people's wishes and the language. Its original form was a picture of a door god fashioned in the Qin Dynasty. Later, more subjects, such as the Kitchen God, God of Longevity, God of Wealth and babies were included. Images like fish, bats and fans are also common in New Years pictures for the similar pronunciation they share with the good words in Chinese language.