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Xiao Yanqing， a farmer in his forties， could never have imagined his life could take a different turn when he started painting tigers in the late 1980s. Today， he is known as one of the Four Tiger Painting Masters in Wanggongzhuang Village in central China’s Henan Province， where tiger culture and worship originated. He has built his own house， bought a car， and is now leading a better life.
The artist is just one among many tiger painters in the remote village. Today， over 50 percent of the 1，400 inhabitants make a similar living with“hoe in one hand， brush and ink in the other.”
Painters are as old as at 70， and as young as 6. The town has won the name No.1 Village of Tiger Painting in China.
This village enjoys a long history of painting.“For generations， we mainly lived on farm land， but many families still kept the tradition of painting，” he said.
“Although we seldom see real tigers， we are very familiar with the folklore about them. Tiger paintings， decorations， shoes and hats can be seen everywhere，” said Xiao.
For instance， a tiger-head-shaped pillow is a traditional gift for a newborn baby in Xiao’s village， as the animal is considered capable of warding off evil and bringing health as well as blessings.
Rural culture
In 2005， the Chinese Government promul- gated the Decision on Further Strengthening Rural Culture Construction， which has made rural culture development a nationwide priority.
“Many villages have taken on a new look， and farmers are now living a better life compared to 10 years ago，” said Pan Lusheng， Chairman of Shandong Federation of Literary and Art Circles and President of Shandong University of Art and Design.
Since 2006， Pan， with his team members， has visited over 200 villages to conduct a research project on rural cultural industry in Shandong Province.
According to research， the arts and handicrafts industry is a typical recycling economy， which doesn’t pollute the environment like others. “Developing cultural industry has promoted rural growth and the restructuring of the local economy，” he said.
The village set a good example of bettering rural people’s lives through expanding the rural arts and handicrafts industry. “It increases income， which means farmers need not seek jobs elsewhere，” he said. “It is also creative and artistic， which adds to the cultural modernity of the countryside.”
In Wanggongzhuang， the streets and squares are clean， the yards are beautified and the whole village is greened. “All of these can be attributed partly to the tiger painting trade，” said Xiao. Cashing in
In the early 1990s， Xiao sold seven tiger paintings at the price of 100 yuan （$15.95） a piece. It stirred a sensation in the small village. When locals saw the benefits of painting tigers， some began to imitate and the number of farmer painters kept growing.
By the late 1990s， the Four Tiger Painting Masters reached a certain amount of fame. Many young people became their apprentices. Gradually， the painting industry took shape.
Wang Jianmin， one of the four masters， said that he has not done farm work for over 15 years. “I am grateful to my father who taught me painting skills， which I’ve taught to my daughter and son-in-law.” The artist currently earns over 200，000 yuan （$31，898） every year painting tigers.
The trade has brought enormous economic returns to local people. In 2012 alone， more than 100，000 tiger paintings were created and sold at home and abroad， with a total output value of 60 million yuan （$9.57 million）.
Farmers in Shandong Province also increase their income through making handicrafts including kites， woven products， wood carvings， and Chinese knot handicrafts， according to Pan’s research.
For instance， folk artists in Yangjiabu Village of Shandong made over 6.5 million kites in 2009， with a total output value of 33 million yuan （$5.26 million）. Each artist earned 12，000 yuan （$1，914） on average， which is higher than the average income of farmers—7，695 yuan（$1，227）—in Weifang City that year.
Statistics also show that the total output value of the arts and handicrafts industry in China has gone beyond 600 billion yuan （$95.69 billion）. Nine provinces including Guangdong， Shandong， Zhejiang and Henan are the key production areas.
Folk industry
To expand the tiger cultural industry， Wanggongzhuang invested 16 million yuan（$2.55 million） to build a tiger cultural community， housing over 60 studios for farmerpainters.
In addition to tiger paintings， a series of other tiger products such as tiger-head-shaped hats， shoes and pillows have also been developed in the village， which are well received on the market.
The village has also boosted the economy in the adjacent villages with its painting business.
While the arts and handicrafts industry is booming in rural areas， it still faces some problems and challenges.
“Quality should be given more attention when making handicraft products，” warned Feng Jicai， Chairman of the Chinese Folk Literary and Art Society. “Rural cultural industry should be developed in a balanced and sustainable way，” he told Beijing Review.
Yan Gongda， member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Vice Chairman of Jiangsu Federation of Literary and Art Circles， agrees with Feng. “Over-advertising and packaging should be avoided，” he said. “Innovation is also important， and products should meet customers’practical and aesthetic needs.”
Social significance
With an increasing number of farmers finding jobs in cities， the rural population has decreased in many places. But in Shandong， where arts and handicraft businesses flourish， more and more young and middle-aged people choose to work at home， according to Pan’s research.
“We can take advantage of stay-at-home handicraft-making as a feasible solution for problems related to the aging population and attracting migrant workers back to rural areas，”said Pan.
“In addition to their gains from agricultural production， farmers in Shandong earn about 10，000 yuan （$1，595） every year on average by making handicrafts，” he said. “It’s quite a handsome income.”
“Farmers engaged in handicrafts seem to feel contented，” Pan told Beijing Review. “They need not only to be provided for， but also to be happy.”
Working at home gives Xiao more time to spend with his family， while still making money.“Young people in our village are employed locally，” he said， “so there are no unattended children and elderly people in our village.”
Xiao said he felt proud of their tiger culture tradition. “Painting tigers not only enriches our cultural life， but also boosts the whole cultural atmosphere of the village，” he said.
An art school for training young artists will start recruiting students soon， as the village plans to train over 2，000 professional painters in the next three years to pass down the village’s tradition.
“The facilities and environment have been bettered， yet our painting skills should also be improved， as these are the foundations of this industry，” he stressed.
The artist is just one among many tiger painters in the remote village. Today， over 50 percent of the 1，400 inhabitants make a similar living with“hoe in one hand， brush and ink in the other.”
Painters are as old as at 70， and as young as 6. The town has won the name No.1 Village of Tiger Painting in China.
This village enjoys a long history of painting.“For generations， we mainly lived on farm land， but many families still kept the tradition of painting，” he said.
“Although we seldom see real tigers， we are very familiar with the folklore about them. Tiger paintings， decorations， shoes and hats can be seen everywhere，” said Xiao.
For instance， a tiger-head-shaped pillow is a traditional gift for a newborn baby in Xiao’s village， as the animal is considered capable of warding off evil and bringing health as well as blessings.
Rural culture
In 2005， the Chinese Government promul- gated the Decision on Further Strengthening Rural Culture Construction， which has made rural culture development a nationwide priority.
“Many villages have taken on a new look， and farmers are now living a better life compared to 10 years ago，” said Pan Lusheng， Chairman of Shandong Federation of Literary and Art Circles and President of Shandong University of Art and Design.
Since 2006， Pan， with his team members， has visited over 200 villages to conduct a research project on rural cultural industry in Shandong Province.
According to research， the arts and handicrafts industry is a typical recycling economy， which doesn’t pollute the environment like others. “Developing cultural industry has promoted rural growth and the restructuring of the local economy，” he said.
The village set a good example of bettering rural people’s lives through expanding the rural arts and handicrafts industry. “It increases income， which means farmers need not seek jobs elsewhere，” he said. “It is also creative and artistic， which adds to the cultural modernity of the countryside.”
In Wanggongzhuang， the streets and squares are clean， the yards are beautified and the whole village is greened. “All of these can be attributed partly to the tiger painting trade，” said Xiao. Cashing in
In the early 1990s， Xiao sold seven tiger paintings at the price of 100 yuan （$15.95） a piece. It stirred a sensation in the small village. When locals saw the benefits of painting tigers， some began to imitate and the number of farmer painters kept growing.
By the late 1990s， the Four Tiger Painting Masters reached a certain amount of fame. Many young people became their apprentices. Gradually， the painting industry took shape.
Wang Jianmin， one of the four masters， said that he has not done farm work for over 15 years. “I am grateful to my father who taught me painting skills， which I’ve taught to my daughter and son-in-law.” The artist currently earns over 200，000 yuan （$31，898） every year painting tigers.
The trade has brought enormous economic returns to local people. In 2012 alone， more than 100，000 tiger paintings were created and sold at home and abroad， with a total output value of 60 million yuan （$9.57 million）.
Farmers in Shandong Province also increase their income through making handicrafts including kites， woven products， wood carvings， and Chinese knot handicrafts， according to Pan’s research.
For instance， folk artists in Yangjiabu Village of Shandong made over 6.5 million kites in 2009， with a total output value of 33 million yuan （$5.26 million）. Each artist earned 12，000 yuan （$1，914） on average， which is higher than the average income of farmers—7，695 yuan（$1，227）—in Weifang City that year.
Statistics also show that the total output value of the arts and handicrafts industry in China has gone beyond 600 billion yuan （$95.69 billion）. Nine provinces including Guangdong， Shandong， Zhejiang and Henan are the key production areas.
Folk industry
To expand the tiger cultural industry， Wanggongzhuang invested 16 million yuan（$2.55 million） to build a tiger cultural community， housing over 60 studios for farmerpainters.
In addition to tiger paintings， a series of other tiger products such as tiger-head-shaped hats， shoes and pillows have also been developed in the village， which are well received on the market.
The village has also boosted the economy in the adjacent villages with its painting business.
While the arts and handicrafts industry is booming in rural areas， it still faces some problems and challenges.
“Quality should be given more attention when making handicraft products，” warned Feng Jicai， Chairman of the Chinese Folk Literary and Art Society. “Rural cultural industry should be developed in a balanced and sustainable way，” he told Beijing Review.
Yan Gongda， member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Vice Chairman of Jiangsu Federation of Literary and Art Circles， agrees with Feng. “Over-advertising and packaging should be avoided，” he said. “Innovation is also important， and products should meet customers’practical and aesthetic needs.”
Social significance
With an increasing number of farmers finding jobs in cities， the rural population has decreased in many places. But in Shandong， where arts and handicraft businesses flourish， more and more young and middle-aged people choose to work at home， according to Pan’s research.
“We can take advantage of stay-at-home handicraft-making as a feasible solution for problems related to the aging population and attracting migrant workers back to rural areas，”said Pan.
“In addition to their gains from agricultural production， farmers in Shandong earn about 10，000 yuan （$1，595） every year on average by making handicrafts，” he said. “It’s quite a handsome income.”
“Farmers engaged in handicrafts seem to feel contented，” Pan told Beijing Review. “They need not only to be provided for， but also to be happy.”
Working at home gives Xiao more time to spend with his family， while still making money.“Young people in our village are employed locally，” he said， “so there are no unattended children and elderly people in our village.”
Xiao said he felt proud of their tiger culture tradition. “Painting tigers not only enriches our cultural life， but also boosts the whole cultural atmosphere of the village，” he said.
An art school for training young artists will start recruiting students soon， as the village plans to train over 2，000 professional painters in the next three years to pass down the village’s tradition.
“The facilities and environment have been bettered， yet our painting skills should also be improved， as these are the foundations of this industry，” he stressed.