Color Characteristics of Yangjiabu Woodblock New Year Pictures

First of all, the artistic characteristics of woodblock New Year pictures come from the specific requirements of old customs. In order to meet the rich psychological needs of young people, it is characterized by fullness of pictures and prosperity of content. The pictures of New Year pictures are basically blank, and even the sky and the ground are enriched and filled with various images. Most of the characters in the painting are smiling, which is related to the taboo of not crying in 2008. All the children in the painting are strong and plump, everyone has new clothes, New Pants, and all the appliances are perfect, symbolizing the richness and auspiciousness of life. In order to express this longing, a large number of auspicious patterns (all kinds of animals, flowers, fruits, articles, dark eight immortals and purple auspicious clouds, etc. ) is added to the picture in the same way. Artists are not afraid that these swarming mascots are irrelevant, because this kind of auspicious celebration, which has been strengthened again and again, is people's wish for 2008. The artist's cleverness lies in the harmonious and beautiful combination of these dense images with decorative techniques. Therefore, joy, auspiciousness, prosperity, enrichment and decoration are the most prominent features of New Year pictures, and they are also an infectious beauty of New Year pictures.

It is the colors of woodcut New Year pictures that render the characteristics of this kind of New Year pictures. Most New Year pictures are overprinted. Overprint is only six colors at most. So the color must be concise and expressive. In order to meet the psychological requirements of the New Year, woodblock New Year pictures pursue bright and warm colors; Among all kinds of colors, fiery red is the main color, and it is also the most used. Because red is the main color of China culture. In terms of color relations, contrasting colors are often used. For example, the folk formula says, "red with green, a piece of meat;" Yellow with purple will not die "(Tianjin). "Red and yellow, hi evil spirit niang; Red heavy purple stinks its shit "(Shandong). All these experiences show that the tone of woodblock New Year pictures is contrast rather than harmony, so as to emphasize each other and make the picture strong and bright. The colors of New Year pictures are mostly made directly from plants and mineral raw materials, and mixed colors are rarely used. In order to make these simple primary colors expressive, the artist adopted the way of color alternation, making the whole picture colorful, mottled and loud, concise and rich, with strong impact. This is the unique color language of woodblock New Year pictures.