The export painting originated in the middle of the 18th century. It adopted Western painting materials, tools and techniques, and most of its works were oil paintings, prints, gouache and glass paintings. The content focuses on the scenery, customs and daily life of the local people, among which Guangzhou, the treaty port at that time, is the most common. Because it adopts the western shape and system to show the Oriental charm, it is quite popular with foreigners and is sold to foreign markets. Interestingly, painters called them "foreign paintings," while foreign buyers called them "Chinese paintings," and in the middle and late 20th century, Western scholars of art history have called them "Chinese export paintings" or "China trade paintings".
外销画兴起于18世纪中叶左右，采用西方的绘画材料工具及技法，作品大多为油画、版画、水粉画和玻璃画等。内容集中于表现当地人们的风景风俗、日常生活面貌，其中以当时的通商口岸广州最为多见。因其采西方形制表现东方韵味，颇受洋人喜欢，多销往国外市场。有趣的是，当时的画师将其称为“洋画”，而外国的购买者们则称其“中国画”，进入到20世纪中后期，西方的艺术史研究学者们才统一称之为“中国外销画”（Chinese export paintings）或“中国贸易画”（China trade paintings）。
