New Year Picture (Nianhua) derives its name from the age-old custom of Chinese New Year decorations. A fascinating and popular art form, it in fact constitutes a separate branch of traditional Chinese ainting. The concept of New Year Picture refers to painted works made by local workshops and regularly posted inside and outside homes. New Year Picture encompasses all such paintings reflecting rural and urban lives, handmade by folk artisans, as well as those carved or produced and painted in local workshops. Folk New Year Picture possesses colorful detail with abundant cultural and historical conotations. here are five major categories of Chinese New Year Pictures discussed in this book: Door Gods, Folk Deities, Cute Babies and Beauties, Customs and Festivals, Stories and Local Operas. The principal images are explained with brief captions. Most of the New Year Pictures collected in this book are made by folk masters from every area of China.