A young local official has successfully put her town in the national spotlight by sharing a photo set of herself on social media.

Wang Xue is a member of the Communist Party committee in Jiulonggang Town, in eastern China’s Anhui province. In the photos, she poses in front of buildings that date back to the early 20th century wearing a qipao, a traditional Chinese dress. Wang told Anhui News on Monday that she hopes to make use of these “vintage-style photos” to promote the town’s tourism industry.

Wang became a village official in Jiulonggang Town after graduating from university in 2011, and was in charge of tourism until recently. The town — home to 31,500 residents — features some buildings that are over 100 years old and have been designated provincial-level cultural relics, owing to the fact that it was the first in the area to have its own coal mine and railroad. Yet according to Wang, the area has failed to convert its history into a steady stream of tourists.

She hired a professional photographer to shoot the photo set, and it seems to have paid off: Her photos have been widely spread by news media and online since Monday. On microblog platform Weibo the photos were widely shared and liked, but the most popular comments were less than appreciative of Wang’s photo shoot, saying that the photos promoted herself rather than her town. “If you want to take portraits just take portraits, you don’t have to think so big of yourself,” wrote one user.

This is not the first time a young local official has modeled to try and boost tourism. Ouyang Feng, the 27-year-old deputy secretary of the Communist Party of Xinxi Village, in eastern China’s Jiangxi province, posted a series of photos of herself in a sea of flowers back in March.

“I hope to show more people the beauty of Xinxi,” Ouyang was quoted as saying, “and attract more tourists to come here on their spring outings to appreciate the flowers.”

(Header image: Wang Xue poses in front of a building. @anhuishengluyouju from Weibo)