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Photo taken on Jan. 20, 2020 shows Palace Museum-themed lipsticks produced by Bloomage Biotechnology, a Chinese pharmaceutical company in east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Wang Kai)
Shen is a veteran painter in the village. His family exhibition with over 400 folk art exhibits attracted 2,000 visitors to the festival last year.
"We preserve traditional cultural items and customs. People come to our village to share the festival atmosphere and learn the cultural folk traditions," said the 65-year-old artist.
Shen's family made festival preparations with extra efforts this year, as the Year of Rat is his son's zodiac year of birth.
"I hope that the zodiac sign brings him countless good luck this year, as the pronunciation of rat sounds similar to the word 'counting' in Chinese," said Shen, smiling from ear to ear.
Over the week, over 160 of Shen's fellow villagers held public performances from dragon and lion dances to puppet shows and the craftsmanship of making clay sculptures and paper cuttings. Many of the activities have the zodiac animal sign of rat as the cultural theme.
"This year, the number of villagers voluntarily participating in the activities is more than twice as many as in previous years. As traditional culture elements are appreciated by more and more people, we find a way to sustain and carry forward these folk arts," Shen said.
A villager weeds for peach trees in Gaozhao Village, Xiji County of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, on May 29, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Peng)
