Yan Wenyan – Inheritor of Dai Wall Painting in Menghai County, Xishuangbanna 

Yawan Yan developed a strong interest in painting at a young age, beginning to teach himself at the age of 8. At 14, he started learning from mural artists in neighboring villages and towns, systematically and comprehensively mastering the traditional Dai painting skills. In 1980, he participated in a Dai folk art training class organized by the prefecture’s cultural center. Under the guidance of art teachers, his mural painting skills improved significantly, and he also learned how to create peasant paintings.

Yawan Yan is a highly influential and well-known folk painter in Xishuangbanna Prefecture. He is well-versed in the Dai language and history and has fully mastered the exquisite skills of painting and mural creation. He can showcase the cultural and historical characteristics of his ethnic group through his paintings and murals. Since he started creating murals, he has painted over 2,000 meters of Dai murals for his village and surrounding villages. In 2010, the Yunnan Provincial Department of Culture honored him with the title of Representative Inheritor of Provincial-level Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Unlike other painters, Yawan Yan does not need to use a pencil to sketch or any reference to paint. Instead, he directly paints with pigments based on the artistic conception in his mind, demonstrating his innate painting talent.

Yawan Yan passed on the traditional painting skills he had mastered to his daughter, Yu Yan (玉烟), and began taking on apprentices. His apprentices, including Yan Guang (岩光), Yan Wenshang (岩温香), and his daughter Yu Yan, had their works “New Dai Village,” “A Corner of the Forest,” and “A Date in the Forest” selected for the Second Yunnan Peasant Painting Exhibition.

In 1997, Yawan Yan began taking on apprentices to pass on his traditional painting skills. Every year, he trained about 10 apprentices, with the youngest being only 9 years old. Through learning the skills of Dai mural painting, more young people are better able to protect and inherit Dai culture, bringing it new vitality and hope.

Yawan Yan said, “Painting is not easy, but as long as the students are patient and willing to learn, I can teach them. They will be able to make contributions to the country in the future.”

Dai murals, known in the Dai language as “Dian Za” (典扎), are a type of fine art created on the walls of Buddhist temples and are the most important form of Dai art. They were included in the second batch of Yunnan Province’s intangible cultural heritage protection list in 2009. Dai murals are not only an important means for the Dai people to record and inherit their traditional culture and art but also precious historical materials for studying the social history, culture, economy, and politics of the Dai ethnic group. The vivid Dai murals depict the rich life of the Dai people, such as hunting, labor, bathing by the river, and dancing, and have high artistic value.

As an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, Yawan Yan not only bears the responsibility of protecting and inheriting cultural heritage but also has the duty to promote and train the next generation of inheritors. Through his unique approach of creating art with emotion and training apprentices, he has paved a new path for the inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, making the Dai mural art more colorful and vibrant.