On February 10, the 2026 "Diverse Prevailing Features of Sichuan" large-scale thematic reporting campaign visited Mianzhu, Guanghan, and other locations in Deyang. How can age-old Spring Festival traditions keep pace with the times? And how can cultural heritage find its place in modern life? On our tour, we saw how a creative twist on classic New Year traditions is unlocking fresh consumer appeal.

Heritage Evolves—Old Crafts Go Modern

The day's visit happened to fall on the opening morning of the 25th Mianzhu New Year Painting Festival. At the Sports Center Plaza in Mianzhu, Deyang, over 1,400 local performers took part in the "Spring Tour in Paintings · New Year in Mianzhu" parade, bringing Mianzhu's iconic New Year painting "Welcoming Spring" to life. "This is a flavor of Spring Festival that can be found nowhere else but in Mianzhu," a local resident told reporters with pride.

As a national-level intangible cultural heritage, Mianzhu woodblock New Year paintings date back to the Song Dynasty and were once a Spring Festival must-buy for households across Sichuan. "No matter how much it evolves, the techniques of carving and hand-coloring must never be lost," Chen Gang, a Deyang city-level representative inheritor of Mianzhu woodblock New Year paintings, told reporters. "Bold yet fluid lines, vibrant and lucid colors"—this is the enduring essence of Mianzhu New Year paintings. Within that framework, the themes and expressions can take on fresh possibilities.

This "fresh twist" finds expression in whimsical, cartoon-style "cute New Year paintings", extends to crossover fusions that place traditional motifs onto throw pillows, round fans, decorative ornaments, and even emojis, and culminates in immersive spectacles like the New Year Painting Festival parade.

Cultural Creativity Evolves—A 3,000-Year-Old Bird Gets a New Look

"Last year, the total sales of cultural and creative products from the Sanxingdui Museum exceeded 200 million yuan," He Qing, head of the Industrial Development Department of the Sanxingdui Scenic Area Management Committee, told reporters at the museum in Guanghan, sharing insights into the museum's cultural creativity strategy. "As 'spending the New Year in a museum' becomes a new travel tradition, how to fulfill visitors' wish to 'take something meaningful home' is where our cultural creativity begins," He Qing said.

Sanxingdui currently offers over 2,000 cultural and creative products, with more than 30 percent of its portfolio renewed annually. From archaeological blind boxes that satisfy museum lovers' desire to dig in, to versatile plush charms and a wide array of bookmarks and fridge magnets, "a dazzling variety" is the impression visitors often leave with.

Among the vast array of products, the bird-shaped "Jiu Jiu" pendant—inspired by the bronze sacred tree—stands out in particular. "At first, we only offered a green bird-shaped plush charm," He Qing explained. "But based on visitor feedback and market research, Jiu Jiu soon expanded into white, pink, black, colorful editions, and most recently, a movable version." He noted that Sanxingdui's once-simplified cultural products are now increasingly evolving toward systematic IP development.

Lifestyle Experiences Evolve: Mid-Autumn Gala Breathes New Life into Ancient Streets

The 2025 CMG Mid-Autumn Festival Gala, held in Deyang, brought unexpected attention to the ancient Heita Street in Guanghan, all thanks to a single song: Spicy Mao Xue Wang.

Revitalizing an old street begins with getting the basics right. According to Xie Xiaoxia from the Guanghan Municipal Bureau of Culture, Broadcast-TV and Tourism, the renovation of Heita Street was carried out with a firm commitment to preserving the street's original character and way of life. "So far, we've restored 119 historic buildings and structures alike across about 27 mu (around 1.8 hectares) of land," Xie said. "Over 20 integrated commercial formats, from eateries and cafés to cultural creativity shops, have taken shape here. These efforts have effectively revitalized the function and vibrancy of the old street."

To create a seamless connection with the blockbuster Sanxingdui site, Guanghan plans to launch the "Enjoy Tour in Guanghan" travel shuttle route in 2026, linking Heita Street and other local attractions in an effort to extend visitors' stays.

As the reporter was about to leave Heita Street, a young couple appeared before one of its old houses, posing for a new Chinese-style wedding photo shoot. Where time-honored charm meets contemporary life—perhaps that is what it truly means to renew an old street. The woodblocks for New Year painting prints, the relics in museums, the streets marked by time—each carries the vibrant pulse of contemporary life and offers a refreshing taste of Spring Festival.

Reporter's Notebook

Spring Festival Comes Early

On the morning of February 10, red lanterns lined the streets of Mianzhu, and the rhythmic beat of gong-and-drum percussion ensembles filled the air. We arrived just in time for the opening of the 25th Mianzhu New Year Painting Festival. The city had already switched into Spring Festival mode.

The lively parade turned the street into a flowing museum of New Year paintings. Crowds gathered around the "Spring Ox" ceremony. As painted whips gently struck the paper ox, grain spilled from its belly, and laughter followed as people scooped up the seeds. "It symbolizes a bountiful harvest," they said. The most enchanting part, however, was the scenes that seemed to have stepped right out of Mianzhu's signature New Year paintings—"The Mouse's Wedding", "Lady on a Bicycle", and more—vividly brought to life with striking authenticity. Amid the cheering crowd, a local woman proudly shared, "These were all created by our ancestors over a hundred years ago. And now we perform them!"

This is how culture lives on, leaping from paper to street, and from the street back into the heart. This vibrant revival has also nourished local industry. In 2025, Mianzhu's New Year paintings and related cultural creative products generated over 37 million yuan in output value and supported more than 1,500 jobs directly or indirectly.

We bid farewell to the parading crowds and made our way to the city's renowned New Year customs village. The village feels like a welcoming, open courtyard dedicated to New Year paintings, where you can sip a coffee latte topped with New Year painting motifs, listen to stories behind the prints, or try your hand at making one yourself. Here, everyone finds their own comfortable way to celebrate.

It was only the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, yet the Spring Festival spirit in Mianzhu was already thick enough to hold. It lives not only in the exquisite New Year painting blocks, but also in the gongs and drums echoing through the lanes, and in every face aglow with the warm light of everyday life. And so we let ourselves be swept up in the festive tide—celebrating, ahead of time, a Chinese New Year already burning bright.