If you were to visit this place, you must be envious and amazed, for the villagers here live as if they are in a painting. This is Manle Village, located in Menglong Town, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province. Its beautiful mural paintings, covering an area of 5,000 square meters, have attracted numerous visitors to take photos, making this small village an "Internet celebrity village" with millions of followers.

And it's all thanks to Yan Wenjiao, a young college student who emerged from this village. Recently, at the 11th Culture and Arts Festival of Countries in the Lancang-Mekong River Basin, 29-year-old Yan Wenjiao was selected as a representative of Chinese artists for the official promotional video. Now let's step into Manle Village together and explore the wonderful story behind Yan Wenjiao and this beautiful countryside.

It took Yan Wenjiao five years of his artistic talent to bring vibrant colors to over 300 villages. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

Yan Wenjiao, an undergraduate student from Manle Village, is also studying oil painting at Hubei Institute of Fine Arts. In July 2015, while Yan Wenjiao was home for summer vacation from university in Wuhan, he casually painted the words "Manle" on the weathered walls of his house. This caught the attention of many villagers, and passersby couldn't help but take a few more glances. The following year, Yan Wenjiao painted a Dai ethnic "auspicious animal" on another wall of his house, which attracted even more villagers to gather and admire. Impressed by Yan Wenjiao's talent, some villagers started approaching him to request paint on their walls, and Yan Wenjiao gladly accepted. As he worked on his paintings, villagers would often stop to watch, and some even helped him apply colors.

Yan Wenjiao painting murals in Wuhan during his studies at Hubei Institute of Fine Arts. 

These murals also caught the eye of Yanjian, the secretary of the village branch in Manle. He sought out Yan Wenjiao, hoping that he could create more murals for the village. Yan Wenjiao noticed that there were many unused and deteriorating walls in Manle Village, covered in moss and cracks. He thought to himself, "With a little cleaning, these walls would make excellent 'canvases.' So many people love them, why not leave a lasting impact?" 

Yan Wenjiao innovatively transforms the villagers' garages. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

In June 2018, after Yan Wenjiao graduated from Hubei Institute of Fine Arts, he returned to Manle Village with the intention of starting his artistic career and focusing on mural painting. Yan Wenjiao became the first college graduate to stay in the village, noting, "I grew up here, and the biodiversity and ethnic diversity inspire my artistic creativity. I came back to Xishuangbanna to change the appearance of my hometown. Going to university wasn't about leaving my rural home, but come back with better skills to help my hometown."

Yan Wenjiao and his team were creating a 3D mural on the ground. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily

Within this 80 mu (about 5.33 hectares) village, Yan Wenjiao has created over 5,000 square meters of mural and ground paintings, adorning every corner. The villagers of all ages greatly appreciate his work.

At the entrance of Manle Village, in front of the village temple, there is a 10-meter-long, half-a-person-high wall painted by Yan Wenjiao, depicting the "Four Grandmas" (referring to four elderly ladies in the village). They are portrayed covering their ears, closing their eyes, or placing their hands over their mouths, displaying a friendly demeanor. This mural captures the values cherished by the elderly in the village. Yan Wenjiao explains, "The 'Four Nevers' represent the teachings in the Analects of Confucius: 'Do not look at, do not listen to, do not speak of, do not do whatever is contrary to ritual propriety.'"

"Four Grandmas" painted by Yan Wenjiao on a wall at the entrance of the village. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

Every village has its own unique story. At the entrance of Manzhanzai Village, there is a massive mural measuring over 12 meters in length, over 3 meters in width, and covering an area of approximately 40 square meters. It depicts a scene of 500 people participating in the Ganbai Festival, which has captured the attention of visitors and earned the nickname "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" of Xishuangbanna version.

Yubo Xiwan, the women's director of Manzhanzai Village, expressed, "In this painting, you can see 500 individuals, each with different actions and postures. Some are barbecuing, some are dancing with elephant-foot drums, some are engaging in swordplay, while others are splashing water or paddling dragon boats. The joy of our village has been immortalized by Yan Wenjiao on these walls." Yan Wenjiao mentioned, "The characters in the mural are based on real people, and villagers can find themselves within the artwork."

Elephants created by Yan Wenjiao in Daxiang Village. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

One story after another is depicted on walls and floors by Yan Wenjiao, and the narrative scroll continues to grow longer. He is like a modern-day "Ma Liang" (a renowned Chinese painter) using his artistic talent to transform the small countryside into a "fairy tale world."

"It's absolutely beautiful!" exclaimed Mr. Zhao, a 60-year-old traveler who embarked on a 56-hour train journey from Shenyang, followed by an 8-hour bus ride to visit Manle Village. He couldn't resist capturing the mesmerizing scenes as soon as he got off the vehicle. When viewed from above by a drone, the village's walls and grounds are filled with vibrant and fashionable colors. Sea of clouds, tea mountains, rainforest flora, elephant-foot drums, hulusi (a Chinese musical instrument), and men and women dressed in traditional ethnic attire... Many familiar sights of Yunnan unexpectedly cross paths with visitors on walls and grounds.

Yan Wenjiao enjoys collecting traditional Dai folk stories from elderly villagers to use as inspiration for his murals. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

Yan Wenjiao actively seeks inspiration from traditional culture, incorporating elements from the Dai ethnic epic poem "Zhao Shu Tun" and other folk tales into his artwork. He skillfully portrays the traditional Dai silver-making craftsmanship with his brush, achieving a perfect fusion of traditional culture and modern painting techniques.

Mural depicting the Dai ethnic silver-making craft. Photo by Xiao Xi, from Changjiang Daily 

In 2022, Manle Village was honored with the titles of "Provincial Beautiful Village" and "City-level Demonstration Village of Rural Tourism" in Yunnan Province. Unprecedented numbers of tourists flocked to the village, turning it into a "Internet celebrity village" with millions of visitors. With 125 households and a population of 613, the average annual income per person exceeded 18,600 yuan, and villager Yanyan exclaimed, "The dirt and disorder are gone, and it feels like living in a painting every day." Holding the freshly released tourism plan for Manle Village, Yanjian, the secretary of the village branch, enthusiastically described the future of Manle Village...

After the stories of Manle Village and Yan Wenjiao were shared online, they sparked discussions among netizens, who left numerous praises and comments: "Great job, young man!" They also expressed their joy for the current rural beautification efforts: Rural revitalization holds immense promise; let's work together to build a beautiful homeland!

Today, more and more young people are choosing to return to their hometowns and actively engage in grassroots construction and governance. They contribute their youth and energy to the development and progress of their hometowns, "blossoming" brilliantly through their dedicated efforts. Proud of them!

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(Editors: Amy, Ines)