Yangliuqing woodblock prints captured between covers

A craftsperson paints a print featuring a plump baby holding a large fish with a lotus in the background－a classic image of Yangliuqing woodblock New Year prints. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Yangliuqing woodblock prints are famous thanks to their popularity as decorations in Chinese households during the Lunar New Year.

Last month, a book featuring a wide selection of Yangliuqing woodblock New Year prints was published to give readers a better understanding of the unique art form. The book features text in Chinese and English.

Yangliuqing is a small town about 20 kilometers west of Tianjin municipality. New Year woodblock prints became popular in the area some 400 years ago at the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and flourished during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

In its heyday, almost every household in Yangliuqing town was involved in making woodblock prints. Because the town is so close to the capital－about 150 km southeast of Beijing－many of the artists were recruited to the imperial court to serve as royal painters.

What makes Yangliuqing woodblock prints unique is the process of "half printing and half painting". The first part of the process is similar to other woodblock prints－engraving and printing－but what is different is that the artists will paint over the basic prints with brushes and watercolor.

There are 228 prints in the book that are divided into five major themes, including historical events, opera stories, folk life, beauty and children.