Inner painting also known as inner drawing or inside painted, is a Chinese art

Chinese art

Chinese art is visual art that, whether ancient or modern, originated in or is practiced in China or by Chinese artists or performers. Early so-called "stone age art" dates back to 10,000 BC, mostly consisting of simple pottery and sculptures. This early period was followed by a series of art...

 form. It involves glass bottles which have pictures and often calligraphy painted on the inside surface of the glass. The bottles are produced by manipulating a specialized paint brush

Brush

A brush is a tool with bristles, wire or other filaments, used for cleaning, grooming hair, make up, painting, surface finishing and for many other purposes. It is one of the most basic and versatile tools known to mankind, and the average household may contain several dozen varieties...

 through the neck of the bottle.

Inside-painted bottles are associated with Chinese snuff bottle

Snuff bottle

Snuff bottles were used by the Chinese during the Qing Dynasty to contain powdered tobacco. Smoking tobacco was illegal during the Dynasty, but the use of snuff was allowed because the Chinese considered snuff to be a remedy for common illnesses such as colds, headaches and stomach disorders....

s. The earliest inside painted bottles are thought to have been made in the period between 1820 and 1830 as, by then, the beauty of a snuff bottle was probably more important than utilitarian considerations—-and considering this—few would have been used for holding snuff

Snuff

Snuff is a product made from ground or pulverised tobacco leaves. It is an example of smokeless tobacco. It originated in the Americas and was in common use in Europe by the 17th century...

.

To paint the inside of the bottle, the artist must paint backwards. Concentration is crucial to make precise strokes. A skilled artist may complete a simple bottle in a week while something special may take a month or more. The best craftsmen will produce only a few bottles in a year.