Biz News Flash

Chinese comics good investment choice

By Hu Yang (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2011-03-29 17:04

Many Chinese born before the 1980s still have fresh childhood memories of reading lianhuanhua, the Chinese version of comics. But few of them expected these "small books", in terms of both size and readers' age, to be on high demand among today's collectors and investors.

At a lianhuanhua auction held last April at Panjiayuan, a famous flea market in Beijing, more than 300 items were auctioned for a total of 178,890 yuan ($27,270). Some of the most precious items sold for well over 10,000 yuan.

In many ancient books markets around China, lianhuanhua stalls have designated areas. In Panjiayuan alone, there are more than a dozen stalls selling lianhuanhua. According to a previous media report, a lianhuanhua store in Beijing can have annual turnover of 3 million yuan, on average, with trade volume of 150,000 books.

The enthusiasm extends to original manuscripts and leads to stellar prices for some masterpieces in the auction market. The manuscript of The Earth's Red Ribbon by Shen Yaoyi, a collection of 926 pictures, sold for 154 million yuan in 2006, which set a record for lianhuanhua auction.

Industry experts say lianhuanhua has both cultural value and investment value. And because the number is limited and more people are joining the collector team, the market has great potential.

Lianhuanhua, literally translated as "series of pictures", is a palm-size picture book of sequential drawings popular in China. It originated in the early 20th century and often tells stories from ancient Chinese literature. Many lianhuanhua painters were also accomplished traditional Chinese painters.

The art form had its glory days in the 1950s and 1960s. During those days, many stories of the Chinese revolution found their ways into lianhuanha, and the books gained popularity among numerous children as well as adults.

Lianhuanhua gradually disappeared after the 1980s but quickly came back as collection items in the middle 1990s. And since then, the market has become increasingly hot. By the end of the 1990s, prices for some pieces had risen to thousands of yuan.

In 2006, the first lianhuanhua auction was held in Panjiayuan and attracted collectors from all over the country. Since then, the lianhuanhua auction has become a biannual event in Panjiayuan and leads the national market trend.

Shi Junchao, vice general manager of Panjiayuan Flea Market, said many people collect lianhuanhua to reminisce on their childhoods. They tend to obstinately look for books they had read years before. Painters are another group of major collectors; they appreciate lianhuahua’s artistic value and want to refer to these drawings when painting their own works.

The celebrity effect also adds heat to the market. Cui Yongyuan, a popular host of China's Central Television Station, is a faithful fan of lianhuanha. He set up China's first lianhuanhua museum and makes no secret of his enthusiasm for the picture books at public occasions.

The faze drives many publishers to republish old lianhuanhua, but industry insiders fear the art form can hardly get back to its glory days. No new work has been created since the 1990s for lack of new story topics, as well as a lack of capable painters.

"Very few painters are qualified for lianhuanhua creation," said Liu Jie, a lianhuanhua planner. "As lianhuanhua painters need to have rich knowledge in traditional Chinese culture, they have to be familiar with the clothing, weapons and culture of the era in which the story took place."

"And many young artists are reluctant to create lianhuanhua, as the pay is low compared to the energy and time they need to invest," added Liu.

The rarity of new works drives the collection market for old works all the more.

Lianhuanhua from the early 20th century are extremely precious, as few have been preserved to this day, said Xu Huanghe, a member of the Tianjin Lianhuanhua Collection Association. He said works of that period have great appreciation potential.

Works from the 1950s and 1960s are also hot items, with the ones by famous painters highly sought after.

A veteran collector, Chen Gongfa, thought the lianhuanhua market will continue to grow increasingly mature. Experts predict the market will remain mostly stable while aside from mild price growth.

Many people may start collecting lianhuanhua as a hobby, but they soon will find the hobby a good investment as the appreciation outlook is good. So, experts predict, more and more people will join the group.