Old Beijing Style

Author: Hou Changchun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-02-01
Features: ★ Large 16K hardcover, published by China Film Press in its first edition and first printing ★ Copperplate printing, full-color illustrations, exquisitely drawn and lifelike, with a rustic and profound artistic charm ★ The book depicts the trades and customs of old Beijing from the early 1930s to the late 1940s, many of which are rarely seen today ★ The entire book adopts a one-word-one-image format, with illustrations rendered in traditional Chinese ink painting style; the text is bilingual (Chinese and English), with some sections providing historical anecdotes, lane names, and children's rhymes and folk sayings related to the illustrations. Old Beijing Vistas covers the trades and customs of old Beijing across the seasons, many of which are no longer visible today. To faithfully document these through language and art is a contribution to Beijing's historical research by the late Mr. Hou Changchun and the publisher's responsibility. If the publication of Old Beijing Vistas can offer even a small measure of compensation for the lost folk customs of old Beijing, it would be a truly gratifying achievement.