Dafen Oil Painting Village

Dafen Oil Painting Village in Longgang District grew from a small settlement into a globally known center for oil painting reproduction, where thousands of painters and workshops once supplied a large share of the world's hand-painted copies of classical and contemporary works. Walking the village's lanes, visitors pass open-fronted studios where painters work in view of the street, alongside galleries selling everything from Van Gogh and Monet reproductions to original contemporary pieces and commissioned portraits. The Dafen Art Museum anchors one end of the village with rotating exhibitions of original work and occasional special shows that carry a small entrance fee, while the village itself remains free to explore. A visit runs one and a half to two and a half hours for a walk through the main lanes and a stop in a few galleries; weekday mornings are the best time to watch painters actually at work, since the village can otherwise feel more retail-focused later in the day and on weekends. The painted walls and murals along the main street, along with the open studios themselves, are the most photographed features. Because much of the village's business is now geared toward commissions and shipping abroad, visitors interested in buying should expect to negotiate and can often arrange custom pieces to be shipped home. The village is a short walk from Dafen metro station on Line 3.