Zhuxian Town New Year Painting Journey

Author: Shen Hong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: New Year prints, as a folk art, have never made it onto the stage of mainstream art and are often overlooked by scholars and literati. However, it is actually one of the most promising collectibles today. By reading this book and following the author to Yangjiafu, you are sure to gain new perspectives on it. The genre of folk woodblock New Year prints refers to their form, while the theme refers to their content. There are many genres of New Year prints, and they are quite ( means "" in Chinese, which implies meticulousness and attention to detail). Moreover, different regions have different names for the genres of New Year prints. These are the basic knowledge of New Year prints, especially some specialized terms, which are essential for collectors to understand. The themes of New Year prints are rich and diverse, covering a wide range of topics with profound cultural connotations. They have high aesthetic and collectible value and serve as visual evidence for studying history, folklore, aesthetics, painting, literature, and more. Some of them can even supplement official historical records, and calling it an encyclopedia of ancient times is no exaggeration.
1. Genres of New Year Prints
The differences in the genre of door gods primarily lie in their size and form, with different genres used for different placements. The differences in the genre of divine images also depend on where they are placed, such as the Kitchen God, Heaven and Earth deities, granary gods, and vehicle and stable gods. The differences in the genre of New Year prints also manifest in their formats, which include zhongtang (center hall), duilou (paired towers), gongjian (tribute tips), santai (three talents), gejin (patterned brocade), menhua (door prints), dengzhi (lantern paper), huazhi (flower paper), sifansheng (four-panel screens), and bafansheng (eight-panel screens). Even within the same genre, there are variations. For example, zhongtang New Year prints are further divided into first, second, and third routes based on size. Tiaosheng (striped screens) usually come in four or eight panels. If the same theme is combined, it forms a "tongjing" (continuous scene), while each panel is a standalone painting with unique artistic characteristics. There are also couplet New Year prints. The Weixian New Year prints and Wuqiang New Year prints I collect both include couplet New Year prints, where the patterns or motifs of the couplets are decorated with New Year print designs, or the calligraphy strokes themselves form floral or bird illustrations.
2. Various Terms for New Year Prints
New Year prints have various terms, and different regions may use different names, but generally, the terms used for New Year prints across regions are mostly universal.
- "Zhongtang" refers to New Year prints pasted in the living room.
- "Yueguang" refers to New Year prints pasted near windows.
- "Doufang" refers to New Year prints pasted on chests or measuring cups and spoons.
- "Kangtouhua" refers to New Year prints pasted on kang beds (traditional Chinese beds).
- "Gongjian" refers to full-sheet New Year prints.
- "Santai" refers to New Year prints cut from a single sheet, one-third the size of a gongjian.
- "Huagongjian" and "Huasantai" refer to New Year prints with more intricate processing.
- "Jingongjian" and "Jingsantai" refer to New Year prints colored with gold powder.
- "Chunban" refers to New Year prints printed before June.
- "Qiuban" refers to New Year prints printed after August.
- "Shuǐyìn tàosè" (water-based multi-color printing) refers to the use of multiple carved blocks for multi-color printing, with watercolor pigments applied during the process to create a water-based print effect. Weixian New Year prints, Zhuxian Town New Year prints, and Wuqiang New Year prints, among others, are mostly printed using this method.