Wang Shuhua
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Wang Shuhua, Female, Han, from Gaomi, Shandong, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures (Ⅶ-6). The tradition is documented in Gaomi, Shandong. Within the regional tradition and school record of Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures in Gaomi, Shandong: During the Xianfeng reign, a large number of New Year print makers emerged in Gaomi, and two main schools appeared: the "Laomohua" (old-smear painting) and the "Honghuo" (red goods). Puhui New Year prints are said to have taken shape during the Chenghua reign of the Ming dynasty. At first, some folk painters copied temple murals for sale; because such copying required large numbers of master drafts, the "puhui" (ash-rubbing) rubbing technique was developed on the basis of the traditional "pufen" (powder-rubbing) technique used for folk mural drafts.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Wang Shuhua is anchored in the documented technical standards of Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures in Gaomi, Shandong. Within the documented technical tradition of Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures in Gaomi, Shandong: The Puhui New Year prints of Jiangzhuang, Gaomi City, Shandong Province, are also called "folk freehand painting." In making them, the artist first lays in a draft with a charcoal stick made by burning willow twigs, then outlines it with a brush, and then takes rubbings with white paper; a single draft can yield many rubbed-off copies, hence the name "puhui" (ash-rubbing). After the ash-rubbing, the draft must still be painted by hand, and it can become a finished picture only after passing through multiple process steps. The greatest difference between "pufen" and "puhui" lies not in the use of materials but in the fact that "pufen" employs ready-made powder masters (that is, sample patterns), whereas "puhui" requires first copying the original work. "Pufen" is printed directly, one printing per use; "puhui" involves a single act of imitation followed by multiple printings. Because of this copying stage, Puhui New Year prints have proven highly adept, in the course of their development, at absorbing all manner of pictorial elements and modeling styles so as to suit people's aesthetic tastes. In the early Qing, Puhui New Year prints absorbed artistic elements from literati painting; during the Jiaqing reign they further absorbed and remade the techniques of the two woodblock New Year print traditions of Yangliuqing in Tianjin and Yangjiabu in Wei County, gradually forming a New Year print school with a strong local style. The production characteristics of Puhui New Year prints made it impossible for them to break away from the traditional hand-rubbing and painting techniques, which resulted in long production cycles, elaborate craft, and limited output; as a result they could not compete for the market against the plate-printing technology of modern New Year prints, and by the Guangxu reign the entire industry had begun to decline. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Archival Record of the Working Procedures": After the ash-rubbing, the draft must still be painted by hand, and it can become a finished picture only after passing through multiple process steps.
Archival Record of the Working Procedures
After the ash-rubbing, the draft must still be painted by hand, and it can become a finished picture only after passing through multiple process steps.
Core Technique I
The Puhui New Year prints of Jiangzhuang, Gaomi City, Shandong Province, are also called "folk freehand painting." In making them, the artist first lays in a draft with a charcoal stick made by burning willow twigs, then outlines it with a brush, and then takes rubbings with white paper;
Core Technique II
a single draft can yield many rubbed-off copies, hence the name "puhui" (ash-rubbing).
Core Technique III
After the ash-rubbing, the draft must still be painted by hand, and it can become a finished picture only after passing through multiple process steps.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Wang Shuhua was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures, with Gaomi, Shandong as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Gaomipuhui New Year Pictures in Gaomi, Shandong: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2006 (batch 1), with Gaomi, Shandong as its declared area, and Gaomi Gong Gong Culture Service Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
Puhui New Year prints are said to have taken shape during the Chenghua reign of the Ming dynasty. At first, some folk painters copied temple murals for sale; because such copying required large numbers of master drafts, the "puhui" (ash-rubbing) rubbing technique was developed on the basis of the traditional "pufen" (powder-rubbing) technique used for folk mural drafts.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lvzhenli | Gaomi, Shandong | 01-0054 | Same declared area |
| Wang Shuhua | Gaomi, Shandong | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。