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Xi Wang (L) and his mentor Wang Wenda visit a new year picture-themed park in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 27, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Yangliuqing woodblock new year pictures, which originated from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), has a history of over four centuries. The pictures are noted for their delicate engraving, fine patterns, vivid figures and elegant colours. The crafts were listed as a national-level intangible cultural heritage in 2006. Tianjin Yangliuqing picture studio has been preserving and popularizing this folk art since its inauguration in 1958.

Xi Wang, a Tianjin native born in 1991, became a member of the studio upon his graduation from college in 2014, and dedicated himself as the youngest inheritor of the crafts at the studio. Fascinated by the woodblock new year pictures since childhood, he said the pictures convey the happiness of people during the lunar New Year.

The traditional crafts of Yangliuqing woodblock new year pictures include five steps, namely sketching, engraving, printing, painting, and mounting. As an engraver, Xi Wang learns the crafts from his mentor Wang Wenda, a national-level inheritor of Yangliuqing woodblock new year picture crafts. "Master Wang let me know that I have to build a stable and persevere mind to make smooth and accurate engraving," said Xi.

Unlike wielding a painting brush, it is far harder to manipulate a sculpting knife to leave aesthetic patterns on a woodblock. Having done the work for about a decade, Xi deems it an art of time, adding that only consecutive work can keep his hands proficient. One of the accomplishments that Xi is proud of in 2023 is his successful duplication of six sets of ancient woodblocks passed down from the Ming and Qing (1368-1911) dynasties.

Xi Wang (L) and his mentor Wang Wenda watch new year pictures on the wall at Yangliuqing Town in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 27, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)

Wang Wenda works on a woodblock type at home in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 27, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)

Xi Wang checks a T-shirt bearing elements of traditional new year pictures at the Tianjin Yangliuqing picture studio in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 26, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

A new year picture is displayed at the Tianjin Yangliuqing Woodblock New Year Picture Museum in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 26, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Xi Wang watches new year pictures at the Tianjin Yangliuqing picture studio in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 26, 2023. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

Details in a woodblock type are seen under a magnifier at Wang Wenda's home in Tianjin, north China, Dec. 27, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)