33 years is a microcosm of time and 33 years have changed. From 1989 to 2022, Dafen Oil painting village has gone through 33 years of development. Lao Deng, a painter from Hunan, has lived in Dafen for nearly 30 years. He has witnessed the transformation of Dafen Oil Painting Village from an unknown city village to an internationally famous art village. "I dedicate my youth to Dafen, and Dafen also gives me a stable life." In the early 1990s, old Deng, who came to Dafen Village from Hunan to look for his dream, was familiar with the vicissitudes of Dafen Village. "At the beginning, most of the painters who worked in Dafen Village were fellow townsmen. Most of them were not more than 20 years old and had no painting foundation. They needed to receive basic training. They all began to practice copying world famous paintings." Old Deng said with emotion that an apprentice has no income, and even the copied works belong to the boss. Only after completing the apprenticeship can he become a formal employee. Original paintings replaced the flowing water production mode. "After Dafen Village won the reputation of" the first village of Chinese oil painting "in 2004, it attracted more people to dig for gold. Even the walls of small and medium lanes in the village have become the workshops of painters, and the supply exceeds the demand." Lao Deng said that there were nearly 2000 oil painting related businesses and nearly 20000 employees in the peak period, and the products were exported to dozens of countries and regions such as Europe, America, Southeast Asia and Africa. "In the 2008 financial tsunami, the number of export sales was greatly reduced, and many galleries in Dafen Oil Painting Village could not escape the misfortune of holding the hat. After several years of pain, they adjusted their strategies and switched to domestic sales. Only then did they slowly recover." Times are changing, and Dafen Village is also advancing with the times. Nowadays, the "oil painting production line" mode focusing on small profits and quick sales, batch orders and export sales has faded out of Dafen Oil Painting Village, and original oil paintings are emerging. Old Deng, who is engaged in original creation, occasionally takes apprentices to teach art under the epidemic situation. In his spare time, he engages in artistic creation. He also earns nearly NT $10000 a month, which is enough for him to live a leisurely and freehand life. After decades of development, Dafen Oil painting village now has more than 1800 large and small galleries and stores, and 8000 oil painting employees, achieving a total annual output value of more than 4 billion yuan. (news agency)