Holy Beast murals at Yilan temple painted in modern Pokemon style
Holy Beast murals at Yilan temple painted in modern Pokemon style
2025-09-24
Have you ever seen a temple painting quite like this? A 300-year-old temple in Yilan’s Yuanshan Township recently repainted some of their murals, granting a modern style to the traditional Four Holy Beasts that guard the cardinal directions. Some people say they’re lifelike and offer a fresh take, while others think the cartoonish style has sacrificed their solemnity. The temple said they wanted to try something new to attract a younger crowd.
On a backdrop of sky blue, a green dragon unfurls across this temple mural, its horns shining with a golden luster. A red phoenix flies nearby, buoyed by an eternal flame.
Then there’s the black tortoise, its shell encrusted with jewels alongside a leaping white tiger with shining eyes. Unlike the solemn traditional style of temple painting, the Four Holy Beasts at this temple are vivid and lively, depicted almost like they’re Pokémon.
Mr. Lin
Worshiper
They’re lifelike. Very dynamic. Since they’re more modern. This temple has a long history.
Voice of Hsu Han-po
Artist
Originally, they wanted to paint Pokémon on the ceiling. I said we can’t since there would be copyright issues. But I said I could help them design the Four Holy Beasts in the Pokémon style.
The murals at Zaixing Temple in Yilan’s Yuanshan Township were originally monotone. But the temple board wanted to bring more color and life to the four beasts. The Four Holy Beasts are important guardians in Taiwan’s traditional Taoist belief, representing the four cardinal directions.
Temple Chairman Chen
Originally, we just had oil paintings. He kept saying that the Holy Beasts protect the four directions, so he figured why not paint them? But we can’t do a traditional painting! He said let’s make it 3D. I said all right, that’s not a bad idea.
In a departure from tradition, the temple found artist Hsu Han-po to paint the murals, taking only six days from the original mock-up to the final product. In the future, it also plans to do something creative with the other murals, introducing new elements to their traditional building.
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#temple #Pokemon #tradition #cartoon #templeart #Yilan #ZaixingTemple #art #mural #FourHolyBeasts #religion #artist #dragon #phoenix
宜蘭員山宮廟"四聖獸似寶可夢" Q版畫作超吸睛
2025-09-24
你有看過這樣的廟宇彩繪嗎?宜蘭員山一間超過三百年歷史的宮廟，最近牆面悄悄換上新風貌，鎮守東南西北的四聖獸，不再是傳統莊嚴的畫風，而是以Q版、卡通化的形象現身，有人覺得栩栩如生又新潮，也有人認為有失神明莊嚴，看法兩極。廟方表示，希望吸引年輕人目光的一種創新嘗試。
宮廟牆面上，藍天為底，一條綠色青龍蜿蜒其上，龍角閃著金黃光澤:；赤紅朱雀展翼而飛，燃燒著不滅的火焰。
還有這面，玄武背上鑲嵌著寶石，白虎則是眼神靈動。不同於傳統莊嚴的廟宇筆觸畫風，每一尊聖獸都畫得生動活潑，頗有寶可夢風格。
[[信眾 林先生]]
“畫得栩栩如生啊，很有動感，因為比較現代化，這個廟宇本來就是歷史很久啊”
[[聲源:畫師 許漢柏]]
“他們一開始是想要畫寶可夢的角色在天花板，我就說那個沒辦法，那個有版權問題這樣子，我說我可以幫他們設計，像寶可夢風格的四聖獸”
這間位在宜蘭員山七賢的再興宮，原本廟宇側牆只是單調油漆，廟方希望藉由「四聖獸」彩繪，煥然一新。四聖獸是台灣道教與民間信仰中的重要守護神獸，分別象徵東、西、南、北四方。
[[廟方 陳主委]]
“那時候本來是我們只有油漆而已，他就一直在講說四聖獸是鎮四方，他就想說啊，不然我們來畫一個四聖獸，可是不要畫傳統的，他就說，搞這個3D的，我說好，這個創意不錯”
為了展現不同於傳統的新視覺，廟方找來彩繪師許漢柏畫師操刀，從構圖到完成歷時六天。未來廟方也計畫在更多牆面延伸創作，讓古老廟宇持續注入新元素。
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