MIANZHU, China, Jan. 24, 2025 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/-- On January 22, the 24th Mianzhu New Year Painting Festival unveiled in Mianzhu City in the first New Year following the successful application for the Chinese Spring Festival to be included in the UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The festival was sponsored by the Deyang Municipal Party Committee and Municipal People's Government and organized by the Mianzhu Municipal Party Committee and Municipal People's Government.

A total of 28 folk parade performance formations lined up, with over 1,200 performers vividly recreating the lively scene in the "Spring Celebration Painting", one of Mianzhu's famous New Year paintings. In addition to formations showcasing Chinese folk art, visitors could also see formations exhibiting the New Year customs of the Chinese Qiang ethnic group and the formation from Sichuan Jiannanchun (Group) Co., Ltd. showcasing Mianzhu's Baijiu brewing techniques. "This year's Mianzhu New Year Painting Festival folk parade performance has reached a historic high in both scale and number, and for the first time, we openly recruited actors from the public," said He Wenli, director of the Mianzhu Cultural Center, noting that over 200 actors were recruited in total this year.

Originated in the Song Dynasty of China, Mianzhu New Year paintings are characterized by engraving on woodblocks and artificial colored painting, with content derived from Chinese folklores and rural life. These New Year paintings embody the Spring Festival folk culture that has been passed down for thousands of years in China, serving as "local customs and traditions depicted on the walls".

In February 2002, Mianzhu New Year paintings were included in the first batch of intangible cultural heritages in China. In recent years, Mianzhu City has organically combined folk art with mass culture, promoting the deep integration of culture and tourism. It has built the national 4A-level tourist attraction "China Mianzhu New Year Painting Village" and the Chinese New Year Customs Village. The New Year Painting Festival has become a well-known cultural brand, and Mianzhu City has also been granted honorary titles such as "Hometown of Chinese Folk Culture and Art".

In 2024, the output value of the Mianzhu New Year paintings industry reached over 40 million yuan, with more than 40 enterprises related to New Year paintings springing up. The city received a total of 12.3805 million tourists, a year-on-year increase of 5.02%, and realized tourism revenue of 12.411 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.71%.

Source: Deyang Municipal People's Government (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Asianet and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR PWR

Intangible cultural heritage recognition spurred public festivals and heritage-led tourism integration, promoting traditional arts and local industry growth. The festival, held after inclusion of Mianzhu New Year painting on the UNESCO List of intangible cultural heritage, foregrounded community participation and public performance of traditional folk arts, including ethnic customs and artisanal techniques. Municipal policy tied heritage recognition to tourism and industry development by creating heritage-branded attractions and supporting enterprises, reporting increases in tourist numbers, tourism revenue, and growth in the New Year painting industry.