CNY in NYC:Chinese New Year Arrives in New York City

by+Yin+Xing

Chinese New Year is as impor- tant a holiday in the East as Christmas is in the West. In the eyes of Western people， Chinese New Year may be marked by symbols such as red lanterns， dragon dancing and firecrackers. Actually， Spring Festival promotes profound cultural ideas： respect for nature， aspiration for family reunions and prospects for harmony， which are hardly embodied by these traditional symbols. In New York City， to celebrate the 2015 Chinese New Year Holiday， from February 17 to 24， “Happy Chinese New Year： Fantastic Art China” invited internationally acclaimed Chinese artists， designers and musicians to create a cultural feast for locals and tourists by deeply interpreting the cultural connotations of the festival. The event included the Lincoln Center Public Art Exhibition and Lincoln Center Creative Bazaar， an Empire State Build- ing light installation and a fireworks show themed around Chinese New Year.

Avery Fisher Hall of the Lincoln Cen- ter displayed representative works of Xu Jiang， head of the Hangzhou-based China Academy of Art， Zhan Wang， a professor at the Central Academy of Fine Art （CAFA） and Huang Jiancheng. Depicting the wave of life， Xu Jiangs steel sculpture Symbiosis consisted of nearly 400 sunflowers spreading across the hall. Zhan Wangs Artificial Rocks brought rock-shaped stainless steel and endowed the lobbies of the Europeanstyle building with features of a classical Chinese garden. Three-dimensional animation Along the River During the Qingming Festival by Huang Jiancheng， chief designer of the China Pavilion at both 2005 Aichi Expo in Japan and 2010 Shanghai Expo， was cast on a 3.4-by-3.4-meter screen， providing visitors a chance to experience a prosperous city in the Song Dynasty （960-1279） as depicted in a traditional Chinese painting.

At the David Rubenstein Atrium of Lincoln Center， works by Xu Bing， Lu Shengzhong and Chen Wenling were displayed. Hand-drawn animation The Character of Characters by Xu Bing demonstrated to the audience the evolutionary history of Chinese characters， the core values of Chinese culture today， and the potential impact of future cultural development in China. Featuring the twelve Chinese zodiac signs， Landscape of Postbirth by Chen Wenling presented the phenomenon of visual symbolism in an era of consumption， creating a surrealistic and futuristic landscape.

Along with his signature work Little Red Figures， Lu Shengzhong brought the Creative Bazaar， a piece of contemporary art work， in which audience could visit or trade. Creative Bazaar assembled creative products， traditional Chinese crafts， selected Chinese New Year goods and some intangible cultural relics， which were submitted and recommended by domestic museums including Shanghai Museum， Nanjing Museum and Hunan Provincial Museum. The bazaar contrasted and complemented the ancient market in Huangs work at Avery Fisher Hall.

“When we first designed this event， we intended to present the different facets of contemporary Chinese New Year and related creative fruits” reveals Fan Dian， President of CAFA， which organized the event. “We adopted some traditional elements such as firecrackers， but used more creative and trans-boundary artistic forms to produce a new presentation of public art， which promotes the binding of works， spaces and streams of people.”

A light show illuminated the Empire State Building on February 17 and 18 and the 3-minute show covered five themes to spice up the citys skyline， presenting Chinese New Year connotations of happiness， growth， reunion and peace. “The Empire State Building is frequently lit up to mark big festivals or occasions， but only with simple colors，” remarks Yu Ding， president of the event and Dean of Arts Administration and Education Institute， CAFA. “This year， we updated the lighting system of the Empire State Building， enabling it to show the logo of the event as well as ‘ram， the zodiac symbol of this year.”

At 19：30 p.m. on February 17， a 20-minute firework spectacular including four chapters blossomed over the Hudson River， accompanied by music broadcast by American radio stations WQXR and WABC. Locals watched the firework show， while listening to the soundtracks.

“We invited Guan Xia， president of China National Symphony Orchestra（CNSO）， to provide accompaniment for the firework show，” explains Yu. “Spectators enjoyed traditional Chinese rhythm in the New Year celebration as well as Western classical music. We hoped that the music would convey Chinese cultural elements and would be understood by locals， so that they could share the happiness of Chinese people on Chinese New Years Eve through the fireworks show. It was a public art show in which everyone could participate， even from home.”