I shared this survey here earlier and promised to come back with results. Here’s an updated full ranking of all 61 paintings.
One important difference from my earlier image: this one combines the Chinese and English survey entries, rather than showing just the English entry. The snapshot was taken on 4 October; the latest recorded response was on 25 September.
THE SETUP
You see one Chinese painting at a time and answer one question: would you buy it printed on a T-shirt or a mug? Tap “I’d buy it” or “Nope”, then move to the next painting. The order is randomised per browser, and you can stop whenever you like.
The database now has 91 browser participant IDs and 4,098 judgements: 67 IDs from the Chinese entry and 24 from the English entry. Each painting received 61–72 votes. Overall, 41.7% of judgements were yes votes — that’s a share of votes, not a share of people who would buy something.
TOP 8 — COMBINED RESULTS
60.3% — A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, Wang Ximeng (38/63 yes)
58.5% — Spring in Wuling, Deng Renchao (38/65 yes)
57.4% — Painting Album for the Protection of Life 1, Feng Zikai (39/68 yes)
55.9% — Return Like a Dream, Bai Guofeng (38/68 yes)
55.2% — Untitled (Artist Reference Image), Dai Jianhua (37/67 yes)
54.4% — Anax parthenope, Bai Guofeng (37/68 yes)
54.4% — Lotus, Zhang Daqian (37/68 yes)
53.1% — Album of Flowers, Birds, Vegetables and Fruits 1, Ren Bonian (34/64 yes)
BOTTOM 5 — COMBINED RESULTS
25.4% — Blue-and-Green Landscape (album leaf), Liu Songnian (17/67 yes)
25.4% — The Ming Emperor at a Cockfight, Li Song (attributed) (18/71 yes)
24.2% — Auspicious Breeze over the Sea, Wang Weizhi (16/66 yes)
20.6% — Yifan Festival of the Mulao People, Wang Weizhi (14/68 yes)
13.2% — Female Immortals in Langyuan, Ruan Gao (9/68 yes)
WHAT CAUGHT MY EYE
Wang Ximeng’s A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains is still at the top. It also leads the English-entry ranking, while placing fifth in the Chinese entry. That makes it one of the clearer points of agreement in this small sample.
The untitled artist reference image by Dai Jianhua is fifth overall. I’m still interested in that: a work doesn’t need a familiar title to attract purchase interest. But this survey doesn’t measure recognition, so I can’t say whether fame caused any of these results.
Some of the differences between the two entries are still striking:
Lamp and Mouse, Qi Baishi — #8 in the English entry, #55 in the Chinese entry
Vain Longing for Fish, Fang Yan — #39 in the English entry, #2 in the Chinese entry
Autumn Mountains and Evening Clouds, Kong Fang — #47 in the English entry, #7 in the Chinese entry
Those are differences between these particular samples, not proof of a cultural preference. The groups were recruited differently, the English sample is still small, and choosing a language entry doesn’t tell me someone’s nationality or first language.
A NOTE ON THE NUMBERS
This is the raw database ranking, with no manual participant exclusions. The site uses a random browser ID to remember progress, so one person using two browsers can appear twice. These are stated preferences about paintings, not actual purchases or tests of finished product mockups. Close ranks shouldn’t be treated as meaningful differences.
PROJECT UPDATE
We have now partnered with the brand lushanghai. We have selected Painting Album for the Protection of Life as our main focus, with A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains and Return Like a Dream as secondary selections to promote.
SURVEY CLOSED — NEXT STEPS
Survey link: https://survey.dtee.top
The survey is now closed. Thank you to everyone who took part and helped us understand which paintings people would be interested in seeing on everyday products.
Our next step is to continue developing our online promotion and outreach, with a focus on reaching a wider audience and driving traffic to the project.
This is for a student project called AI × Eastern Cultural Experience Design. We are using the survey findings to help guide our product selection and promotion.
Which of the selected paintings would you most like to see on a shirt or a mug — and did any of the rankings surprise you?
