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In Chinese culture, lantern festivals are celebrated with the hope of bringing a prosperous new year. The 15th day of Lunar January is known as Lantern Festival Day. It is often celebrated with friends and families as a pleasant ending to the two-week long Lunar New Year celebrations.
While the manner in which light festivals are created varies and evolves, the core spirit of celebrating a new beginning remains.
Traditional lantern frames were primarily built of bamboo or wood and covered with paper or light fabrics to form a semi-transparent container.
Much like candles, the inside light source was made of liquid oil with a wick. During the prosperous Tang and Song Dynasties (618 - 1279 A.D.), precious materials including animal horns, leather, feathers, jade, and colored glaze were utilized to create exquisite patterns for lanterns. Their shapes ranged from gorgeous flowers, lively animals, divine statues of buddhas, and more. The design of traditional lanterns used many elements of Chinese culture, such as well-known folktales, auspicious Zodiac animals, and awe-inspiring pagoda-like structures.
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Zigong City, located in the Sichuan Basin, became one of the foremost centers of this tradition, with merchants historically contributing much of their revenue to fund elaborate lantern festivals during Chinese New Year. Over time, this evolved into a thriving folk craft, with skilled artisans dedicating their lives to handcrafting lanterns of all shapes and sizes for all to enjoy.
The city is also home to the Zigong Dinosaur Museum, established in 1987 on an archeological site housing one of the largest dinosaur fossil collections in the world, inspiring many festivals to incorporate prehistoric creatures as lanterns and animatronic structures, further cementing Zigong's place on the world stage.
The unique creation of contemporary lantern making combines both traditional handicrafts and modern ingenuity. The process can be broken down into 3 main categories:
As technology and design advanced, Chinese lanterns have become more scalable and versatile than ever, bringing a more spectacular light art experience to modern audiences.
They are predominantly constructed with pliable and durable stainless steel wires, colorful satin, and ceramics tiles, then illuminated by energy-conserving LED lights. The dynamic nature of the lanterns enriches the artistic and cultural essence of the lantern festival industry.
In 2019, the launch of the inaugural LuminoCity Festival marked a trailblazing evolution of Chinese lantern festivals. By combining traditional Chinese folk arts and crafts, modern design, original storytelling, and diversified cultural elements LuminoCity Festival brought an unprecedented new take to this centuries old industry.
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Meet at our ticket booth to check in for a live lantern-making demonstration with Master Light Artisans Huang Xingxiu and Jiang Lei, whose craft is rooted in a Chinese tradition thousands of years in the making. Discover the artistry behind lanterns and the cultural legacy these masters carry forward. Demonstrations run multiple times daily across multiple locations throughout the season.
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