The group of artists, struggling to make ends meet, were faced with a conundrum. While their speciality, traditional woodblock printing, was highly satisfying spiritually, it exacted a heavy toll on them both physically and financially, as well as on their environment.

That's because the artistic technique requires a single wooden layer for each color that goes into these multicolored works.

It was in Pu'er, Yunnan province in the 1980s, and the artists embarked on a quest to discover a technique that would vastly simplify their task: a single wooden board carrying many different colors. Soon, they would come up with a style of woodblock art that would revolutionize their art and solve their financial woes.

In fact it may not have been quite as revolutionary as it seemed to them, for decades earlier another artistic master, Pablo Picasso, had played with the same idea in doing linocuts.

"To me a picture has always been a sum total of destructions," he is quoted as saying.

In his exploration of the art he eschewed multiple blocks in favor of a single block that he continuously carved into while pigmenting and printing the evolving images. This dynamic process of carving and deconstructing gave birth to what we now know as destructed print, or reduction print.

Leng Guangmian, chief of the reduction woodblock print studio and the teaching base of Pu'er University's fine art students, says he first encountered the technique at Pu'er University in 2003.

"I had experimented with various painting techniques such as oil painting, wash painting and watercolor sketching outdoors," he said. "However, I ultimately returned to reduction woodblocks because its artistic language resonates most with my expression."

A reduction woodblock print is characterized by three things, he says: its unique layered texture; harmonious color blending; and the unpredictability of the production process.

In contrast to traditional woodblock printing, in which colors are sequentially pressed onto paper from different boards, resulting in defined color edges, reduction woodblock are printed and simultaneously cut into the boards.

This dual action creates a textured color presentation and smooth color transitions, and because the boards are ultimately destroyed and discarded, the process is largely unpredictable and utterly irreversible. It is precisely this, including the continuous changes needed while carving and printing, that for Leng produces one of the most satisfying elements of his work: the feeling of serendipity.

Indeed, it may have been serendipity that was at work in 2015 when President Xi Jinping, attending a training session at the central Party school in Beijing, asked a local official of Ning'er county in Pu'er: "Is that road still open?"

He was referring to the ancient Tea Horse Road, a historic trade route that linked China's inland regions with Xizang, extending as far as West Asia and the Red Sea coast. Nestled within Ning'er county is the village of Nakeli, once a vital station along the Tea Horse Road and now home to Leng's reduction woodblock print studio.

"Nakeli and Pu'er are holy lands for artists to paint from life," Leng says. "There are many ethnic minority settlements where the most primitive characteristics of clothing, language and other ways of life thrive to this very day."

The name Nakeli, derived from a minority language, means a fertile field by the bridge, and those who live in the village represent eight minority ethnic groups, including Hani, Yi, Dai, Lahu and Bai, who comprise 63 percent of its residents.

Reduction woodblock is closely linked with Pu'er's ethnic and native culture over 40 years, marked by a well-known Zheng Xu work, Lahu Human Scenery, portraying the traditional lives of the Lahu ethnic group. In 1984, the work was honored with the Golden Prize at China's sixth National Exhibition of Fine Arts, which is held every five years.

Five years later, Village, by Wei Qicong, won the Golden Prize. These back-to-back achievements catapulted reduction woodblock print into prominence, solidifying its top academic place in Chinese woodblock fine art.

Rural Art

While Nakeli could bask in glory artistically, it was classed as a poor ethnic minority area. Ning'er county, where Nakeli village is located, was hit by an earthquake in June 2007, which killed three people, injured 562 and left much of the village in ruins.

However, its fortunes began to change after Xi, then the country's vice-president, visited it a year later and encouraged locals to embrace rural tourism centered on the cultural legacy of the Tea Horse Road.

Local governments began to become aware of the treasures that lay under their noses in the form of woodblock prints, and Nakeli's reduction woodblock print studio, backed by local governments, became a thriving center for farmer artists. Hundreds have graduated over the years, venturing into the world of woodblock art, and they have prospered financially.

Tao Shuangquan, a farmer who had had no formal art education, created popular horse caravan prints after a month of training in a woodblock print studio, and his prints became wildly popular.

Another farmer, Li Jinchang, 30, achieved success with prints depicting rural life scenes such as village views from a cow's back and shepherd boys herding or catching crickets.

Tao and Li are part of a government-sponsored training initiative that involved 100 farmers from around Nakeli that aims to rejuvenate culture in the village and to boost cultural tourism.

Prints measuring 40 centimeters x 30 centimeters take one or two weeks, with each reduction woodblock yielding about 12 copies sold at the equivalent of up to $40 a piece, greatly increasing local villagers' incomes.

"Farmers' paintings are boldly expressive, offering a unique perspective on farming, daily life and traditions," Leng says. "They employ vivid shapes and colors freely, creating dynamic compositions."

Today hotels, homestays and restaurants in Nakeli proudly display farmers' woodblock prints, showcasing their rich multicultural heritage to visitors and guests.

While celebrating the success of farmer woodblocks, Leng points out the absence of a sustainable long-term framework, given the prints' appeal and profitability. Moves are afoot to offer free spaces for farmers to learn woodblock and engage in regular creative activities, he says, and to develop markets.

In addition to innovation with subjects covered, there have been technological advances to tackle problems such as the moisture that plays havoc with prints in Puer's subtropical climate. Leng has set up a greenhouse to provide the ideal environmental conditions required for precise printing.

Drawing inspiration from digital oil painting, Leng is pioneering digital reduction woodblock printing, revolutionizing the once intricate process into a fast and accessible method. Through digital design and procedures, woodblocks can now be cut in just two hours.

This digital breakthrough has sparked widespread interest on social media, attracting a wave of tourists eager to experience the digital art. Recognizing the importance of immersive experience, Leng hopes to bring reduction woodblocks into elementary and secondary schools.

"Experiencing local customs is the best way to understand a culture. It is my lifelong goal to attract youngsters to experience reduction woodblock printing, develop the next generation of reduction woodblock artists, and bring the vibrant Yunnan culture to the world."

Contact the writer at houchenchen@chinadaily.com.cn

Kuang Hanying contributed to this story.