On the Dong Ho woodblock paintings of Vietnam
The Dong Ho village in Vietnam maintains a 400-year-old tradition of manual woodblock printing using natural materials and ancestral techniques. This cultural craft is currently at risk due to a shrinking number of practitioners and difficulty in sourcing traditional ingredients.
Why it matters
Preserving intangible cultural heritage is vital for maintaining global cultural diversity and historical continuity in the face of modernization.
H ave you heard of woodblock paintings? This is a labour-intensive art form that is believed to have originated in China and spread across the world. In Vietnam, the village of Dong Ho in Bac Ninh province has a 400-year tradition of creating colourful prints using this technique. In fact, the Dong Ho woodblock printing was added to the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2025.
The article is a descriptive cultural piece focused on historical preservation and artistic technique.
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