One of the most innovative additions to this cultural landscape is Yuejin Lantern Festival in southern Taiwan’s Tainan City. Launched in 2010 and organized by the metropolis’s Cultural Affairs Bureau, the event offers visitors distinctive views and experiences owing to the unconventional designs on display.
While lanterns are traditionally themed around the Lunar New Year’s Chinese zodiac animal as well as historical figures and legendary beasts, the offerings at Yuejin share more in common with installation artworks.
This year’s event, held Feb. 10 to March 4, showcased 46 creations by artists, groups and students from home and abroad. Among the most eye-catching was “Unrelated” by Tainan’s Yu-Yu Art Studio.
The shimmering golden lantern was constructed from strands of bamboo as well as iron, LED lights, steel wire and timber. “The vertical bamboo slices interweave the real and the virtual … and produce a riveting intersection of shadow and light,” the studio said in its introduction to the piece.
“The Reflection of Moon” by the Department of Visual Arts at National Chiayi University in southern Taiwan (Staff photo/Huang Chung-hsin)
Another unique feature of this lantern event is the terrain. Some of the works on show in Yuejin—a busy river port during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911)—are installed on the water, offering interesting opportunities for artistic expression.
“The Reflection of Moon” provided a powerful example in this regard. Created from bamboo by the Department of Visual Arts at National Chiayi University in southern Taiwan, it was an intriguing horn-shaped sculpture during the day. Then in the evening, when darkness fell and the lights shone brightly, the reflection on the water gave it the appearance of a quarter moon.
This year, more than 660,000 people opted to celebrate the end of Lunar New Year by experiencing the vibrant color and creativity of Yuejin Lantern Festival. The growing prominence and popularity of the event highlights the potential of boldly reimagining ancient traditions. (E) (By Jim Hwang)
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“The Sound of Rainfall” by the Graduate Institute and Department of Visual and Media Arts at Nanhua University in southern Taiwan’s Chiayi County (Staff photo/Huang Chung-hsin)
(This article is adapted from the photo essay “Lighting the Way” in the May/June 2018 issue of Taiwan Review. The Taiwan Review archives dating to 1951 are available online.)