A special illustrated segment featuring nine spirited horses, created by nine prominent Chinese cartoonists, animation directors and game concept artists, was aired during the 2026 Spring Festival Gala broadcast on Monday evening to celebrate the arrival of the Year of the Horse, which begins on Tuesday.
Titled "Nine Horses, One Legend," the segment assembled artists from the comics, animation and gaming industries. The artists, covering both traditional ink and digital media, portrayed horses in dynamic posture -- galloping forward, pausing in quiet contemplation, or rearing in mid-neigh -- fusing classical Chinese symbolism with contemporary visual aesthetics.
Tsai Chih-chung, known for his philosophical adaptations "Zhuangzi Speaks" and "The Tao Speaks," invoked the idiom "take the lead in all your endeavors," a phrase associated with swift success.
Animation director Huang Chengxi, who created "Destiny" for the game Black Myth: Wukong, encouraged viewers to realize their full potential in the new year. Cartoonist Air of "Fei Ren Zai: Legends Among Us" and Toboe, creator of "Fabulous Beasts," extended wishes of fortune and prosperity.
Shan Ze, a Bilibili content creator behind "The Classic of Mountains and Rivers," and Murong Yindao, creator of "Daodao Dog," expressed hopes that audiences would gallop ahead in the coming year.
Weng Jie of the China Academy of Art, who worked on the animated short "Deaf Ear" for Black Myth: Wukong, joined cartoonist Yang Zhi of "The Little Fox's Transformation" in offering messages of smooth journeys and success.
Ye Linggu, a concept artist for the online game Justice Online, offered a more poetic blessing, expressing the hope that the spring winds would propel viewers toward triumph "as swift as a galloping steed."
Despite their varied styles, the nine artists shared a common theme: honoring tradition while embracing the future.
The annual gala, also known as "Chunwan," was first broadcast in 1983 and has become a hallmark of Spring Festival celebrations in China. Recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s most-watched annual television program, the show attracts more than 1 billion viewers each year.
Nine artists paint auspicious horses for Spring Festival Gala
