Dongchangfu is the ancient name given to the city Liaocheng of the Shandong Province. The stunning New Year woodblock prints still produced in Liaocheng are known as Dongchangfu New Year posters.
Dongchangfu and Yangjiabu in Weifang are both known as the folk painting towns of Shandong and represent the eastern and western systems of woodblock printing in the province.
Originating over three hundred years ago, Dongchangfu New Year posters are made by many craftsmen within the city who embrace the unique local style with traditional elements and motifs involved with New Year posters.
There are two main categories for Dongchangfu New Year posters. Traditional paintings originate from hanging door gods within villages to ward off evil spirit. This category includes ancient fables, folklore and historical legends. The festive and symbolic category captures the joyous essence of New Year celebrations and people’s blessings for the year. Auspicious symbols such as fish, babies, flowers and the colour red are common themes and images.
There are seven main procedures craftsmen must work through to create colourful and exquisite New Year posters. These include sketching the design and transferring it to a woodblock, carving the design into the woodblock and separating it into different colours. The design in then printed onto thin pieces of paper one colour at a time. Up to eight different coloured woodblocks can be used for one single design. Dominant colours include red, pink, yellow, green, blue and black.
Dongchangfu New Year woodblock prints are a symbolic representation of the traditional and cultural lives of the people of Shandong. The detailed and colourful designs have created a place for this style of New Year posters as an important traditional folk art in China.
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