Zhangzhou New Year Posters

Zhangzhou city in Fujian Province is well known for its colourful and vibrant New Year woodprints. The original and imaginative designs have made Zhangzhou New Year posters a famous traditional art.

Zhangzhou New Year woodprints first became popular during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) with many people travelling to the region to buy the exquisite folks arts for the Chinese New Year celebrations. Zhangzhou became one of the most productive towns for New Year woodprints in the Fujian Province after the Yan family moved to the region during the Yongle Period (1403-1425) of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). They created a workshop within the town which taught many of the villagers the skills needed to create artistic New Year prints.

Built in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), the Yue Harbour led to Zhangzhou posters being exported to many other provinces and countries. A number of large workshops were established during the early twentieth century in Lianzi Street, Hong Kong Road and Taiwan Road.

Many of the workshops were closed down during the Japanese Invasion (1937-1945). Fortunately, the Yan family purchased many original woodblocks from other craftsmen to save the local folk art from facing extinction. However, woodblock printing industry was not revived until 1957 when the craftsman Mr. Yan Jiajing started to print New Year prints from ancient woodblocks. These amazing prints were exhibited in the Fujian Art Fair in 1986 where they received high accolades for their beauty and originality.

Pear wood was the main material used to create the printing plates for New Year posters in Zhangzhou. Images are carved onto the flat woodblock and printed onto thin paper. Water and powder coloured pigments are used to create striking effects and contrasting shades. Zhangzhou New Year posters focus on welcoming the New Year, bringing blessings and warding off evil spirits. They feature images from historic legends and folk tales, auspicious symbols and scenes from the New Year festivities. Printing workshops were generally divided into two different parts. The “red house” specialized in New Year woodprints while the “black house” was for documents and book printing.

Zhangzhou New Year woodprints are a valuable Chinese folk art which capture the essence of the region’s traditions and culture. Hopefully the future generation will embrace the joyous nature of this folk art and more craftsmen will continue to create amazing New Year woodblock prints within Zhangzhou.