The iron-pen painting dates back to Western Han Dynasty, and it prospered in Eastern Han Dynasty. Until the late Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty, the art began to spread among people. The paintings began to be exported to South-East Asia, North America and West Europe in 1956.

What makes the painting unique is that iron rather than pen is used to do the painting, and fire replaces ink. People paint on wooden board, Xuan paper and silk, boosting very high value of art appreciation and collection.

Lead by folk artist Liu Zhuhua and his followers, a new genre with original content was formed. Fewer people know this art now; even people in Hefei don’t know what it is about. Thus in the 1990s, this art fell into obscurity, and is badly in need of protection.