This website (http://www.childsown.com/) creates stuffed toys from children’s drawings. I thought that it was pretty interesting looking at how the drawings compared to the final product. Below, I included some pictures off of the website. I hope you enjoy!
I just came back from the Chinese Lantern Festival at the St. Louis Botanical Garden, and I have to say that it was an amazing experience. These are not your standard circular lanterns, but rather elaborate works of art. Below, I post some pictures of the twenty-six lanterns and the brief descriptions included in the Botanical Garden’s guide.
The descriptions in bold are part of my top nine. Italic type indicates my comments.
Lantern 1: Welcoming Dragon
The dragon is one of the twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac, which is used to designate years in the Chinese calendar. Each animal is thought to be associated with certain personality traits. Dragon years are usually the most popular to have babies; in China there are more babies born in Dragon years than in any other animal years of the Zodiac.
This dragon greeted visitors at the entrance of the St. Louis Botanical Garden. Needless to say, I was highly impressed by my first glimpse. This particular lantern probably stretched at least 100 feet, making it the largest in the exhibition. Besides that, the detail was astonishing.
Lantern 2: The Dragon Pillars Gate
In China, a huabiao is usually erected in front of palaces and tombs as a symbol of the government’s responsibility to the people. It is typically made from white marble with a square base decorated with dragons, lotuses, and other symbols. Resting on the base is a column with a coiled dragon and clouds. The column is crossed at the top by a “cloud board” and is topped by a round cap. At the top of the cap is a denglong or hou, which communicates the mood of the people to the Heavens.
Unlike the other lanterns, I enjoyed this one better in the daylight. When it was lit up, the details in the crossbeam were lost. The opposite was true in the other lanterns; the light brought out the details. Despite this, it is still one of my favorite pieces. What really resonated with me was the concept of a huabiao and the denglong’s role within it. I like the idea of a mythical creature communicating the mood of the people to heaven.
Lantern 3: The Terracotta Warrior
The warriors depicted here represent figures from the “Terracotta Army,” a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. The figures date back to the 3rd century B.C., but weren’t discovered until 1974 in the Shaanxi Province by local farmers. The original terracotta figures were life-sized and vary in height, uniform style, and hairstyle in accordance with rank. The figures were also originally painted to create a realistic appearance.
Lantern 4: The Faces of the Chinese Opera
Characters in the Chinese opera often wear masks that have different colors, each meant to symbolize a character’s role and portray their emotional state and personality:
Lantern 5: Dragon Embracing the Pillars
Chinese dragons are strongly associated with water in popular belief. They are believed to be the rulers of moving bodies of water, such as waterfalls, rivers, or seas. They are also a symbol of luck, nobility, bravery, strength, and knowledge. Historically, the Emperor of China used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power, and his emblem would have five claws. Nobility and high-ranking officials were allowed to use four-clawed dragons, and lower-ranking officials and the general public were limited to three-clawed dragons.
I love the fact that this lantern is tied so closely with the fountain. It brought out some movement in an otherwise stationary piece. The water completed this piece for me, especially in the little dragon/carp creatures on the corners.
Lantern 6: Lotus Flower
To the Chinese the lotus symbolizes ultimate purity and perfection because it rises untainted and beautiful from the mud. It is a popular artistic subject, from poems and dances to paintings and sculpture. Every part of the plant, from roots to petals, can be put to good use and has medicinal properties. Because of this, the plant as a whole — not just the flower — conveys deep significance.
Lantern 7: The Lotus Ponds
The Confucian scholar Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073 A.D.) wrote:
“I love the lotus because while growing from mud,
it is unstained.”
Sometimes called the Sacred Lotus, this flower often symbolizes elegance beauty perfection, purity, and grace. As the poem suggests, its beauty is often characterized as being enhanced by its muddy origins as an aquatic flower.
Lantern 8: Porcelain Dragon
Chinese porcelain dates back to at least the Eastern Han Dynasty period (196–220 A.D.), although most Westerns are more familiar with porcelain from the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644 A.D.), which controlled much of the porcelain trade along the Silk Road. This installation consists of more than 40,000 individual pieces of porcelain tied together using ancient techniques.
This lantern was cool for two reasons. One: it is actually made out of porcelain, and two: the dragons would spew smoke out of their mouths at regular intervals. While not the typical lantern by any means, it still captured the spirit of China. Whenever the dragons would start their show, Chinese music would start to play and the two dragon heads would move back and forth, releasing smoke onto the onlookers. It gave the feeling of power and nobility, which is precisely what dragons represent in China.
Lantern 9: Sail Boat
Ancient Chinese sailing vessels, known as junks, are still in use today. They were used as ocean-sailing ships as early as the 2nd century A.D. in China and other parts of Asia. Although seafaring junks are made of wood and bamboo, our vessel is made from plastic bottles and follows the 3 R’s of sustainability: reduce, reuse, and recycle. The Missouri Botanical Garden has reduced the number of plastic bottles we use, and this installation reuses bottles collected from around St. Louis. At the end of the exhibit, these bottles will be recycled.
Lantern 10: Zodiac Lanterns
The animals in the Chinese Zodiac are fabled to have held a race across a river for a place among the signs. Rat used his clever ways to be the first to get across (often at the expense of others), and is the first animal in the Zodiac. The other eleven followed in succession. Each Zodiac sign corresponds to a calendar year, and the cycle repeats every twelve years. All the animals have specific characteristics associated with them, and people are thought to assume the qualities of the animals into which year they are born.
Lantern 11: Panda’s Paradise
Everybody recognizes the giant panda, with its round shape, black and white fur, and black patches around its eyes. Its image appears on signs and labels that identify many endangered species, both plants and animals, and it is itself a protected species. This bear is native to central-western and southwestern China, and the Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries, located in the southwest Sichuan province, are one of the few natural habitats to be protected as UNESCO World Heritage site.
Lantern 12: Moonlight Pathway
The symbolic significance of moons and stars has been traced to Chinese coins from approximately 2,000 years ago. The ancient character for star also meant to spread or distribute, and the implied meaning of the star symbol is that Chines coins should be like the star-studded sky: widespread, numerous, and broadly distributed. The moonlit pathway evokes a heavenly sky, but also wealth, power, and abundance as you pass beneath the canopy of stars and moons.
Lantern 13: Goddess Blessing Buddha
The bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, also known as in China as Guanyin, is the embodiment of compassion and is said to recognize and understand — and subsequently relieve — the suffering of all beings. Guanyin is most often represented as a beautiful woman, and in Chinese art us often depicted in a white flowing robe, standing on top of a dragon with two acolytes, a boy and a girl, standing on either side.
Lantern 14: The First Emperor’s Quest for Immortality
The First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, unified China, enacted many economic and political reforms, such as standardizing the currency and systems of measurements. He also built an early version of the Great Wall of China, the Terracotta Army and the mausoleum they “guard,” and an enormous road system. But he was also superstitious, and as he grew older, he began to fear death and sought a magic elixir that would offer him immortality.
Lantern 15: Double Seventh Festival
A young cowherd, Niulang and a beautiful weavergirl, Zhinü, got married without telling Zhinü’s mother, the Goddess. When she found out the angry Goddess order Zhinü to return to heaven. Niulang went to find her, so the Goddess created a wide river in the sky (the Milky Way) to separate them forever. But once a year, all the magpies in the world fly up into Heaven to form a bridge so they can be together for a single night: the seventh night of the seventh moon.
There is nothing like a good story to make for an excellent lantern. As an added bonus, the magpies’ bridge consisted of a series of magpies that lit up one at a time to give the illusion of magpies actually flying up into the sky.
Lantern 16: The Flying Apsaras
Flying apsaras, sometimes referred as feitian in Chinese, are flying celestial being whose images are mostly found in cave murals, such as those in the Dunhuang Grottoes in Gansu province, China. Artists depict flying apsaras surrounded by clouds and wearing flowing dresses with furling silk ribbons, but no wings or feathers. Some of them are shown playing musical instruments such as lutes, fifes, or small drums. Their overall effect is that of grace and elegance.
Lantern 17: Four-Faced Buddha
There are many temples and sculptures depicting the Buddha in China and around the world. Buddha is sometimes depicted as fat and happy, and other times he is very thin; sometimes he stands, and other times he is sitting. Buddha sometimes holds various symbolic objects or makes symbolic gestures, and his clothing varies; for example, in China, where monks and nuns do not expose their upper arms, the Buddha is shown with a tunic and long sleeves.
Lantern 18: Butterfly Lovers
The popular love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai is a “Romeo and Juliet” tale passed down in China for well over 1,000 years. Zhu Yingtai, distinguished as a man, becomes best friends with her classmate Liang Shanbo. The two plan to marry, but when Shanbo visits Yingtai’s home, he learns the girl is betrothed to another. Under the pressure of traditional societal roles, the two die for their love, and transform into a pair of butterflies.
This lantern may have been the most extensive in terms of scenery. There was a whole field of flowers and animals lanterns spread out over a rather large area. The detail in the fan is also noteworthy.
Lantern 19: Nine-Dragon Mural
The Chinese consider the number nine to be special because it is the largest possible single digit, and nine was considered the number of the Emperor. Chinese dragons have scales in multiples of nine, and there are nine forms of the dragon. The nine-dragon wall has images of nine different dragons, and is found in imperial Chinese palaces and gardens. Among the most famous nine-dragon walls are two in the Forbidden City in Beijing.
The intricate background was quite amazing. However, that is not why this is among my top nine. Like several other lanterns, this one contained an element of movement. All nine dragons turned their necks, tails, and feet.
Lantern 20: Heavenly Temple
Heaven and Earth symbolically meet in the Heavenly Temple wherever there is a conjunction of the circular (Heaven) and the square (Earth). Inside the temple in the hall of prayer for good harvests there is a series of pillars that represent the four seasons, twelve months, and twelve traditional Chinese hours. All the buildings within the temple complex have dark blue roofs tiles, representing Heaven. Because of its profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.
Lantern 21: Colorful Flower
China is a culture of flowers, and the art and customs of the society are filled with symbols and habits that center on flowers. Some important flowers in Chinese art and culture include ones that the Garden also cultivates and displays: orchid, chrysanthemum, water lily, and camellia. Although China does not have an official state flower, the two unofficial national flowers of China are the plum blossom and the tree peony.
Lantern 22: Jiang Tai Gong Fishing
Jiang Tai Gong was an expert in military affairs, and hoped that one day he could help overthrow the evil Shang ruler. He waited patiently, fishing with no hook, believing that the fish would come to him of their own volition when they were ready. Eventually he was made prime minister by King Wen of Zhou, who gave him the name Jiang Tai Gong. He later helped Wen’s son, King Wu, overthrow the Shang dynasty.
The location of this lantern helped it into the top nine. This lantern was located in the Chinese garden section of the botanical garden. As a result, this lantern was among a real pond complete with real lily pads and grasses. The backdrop of a Chinese pagoda also helped.
Lantern 23: Cherry Blossom
The cherry blossom has all sorts of meanings in different societies around the world, and many cities celebrate the cherry blossom with a festival in the spring. In the United States, the most famous display of cherry blossoms is in Washington D.C. In China, the cherry blossom is a very significant symbol of feminine power, beauty, and love.
Lantern 24: Chinese Pillars
Although Chinese garden designs are asymmetrical and meant to create a sense of flow, when buildings are constructed or renovated, they should be symmetrical, and any secondary elements, such as pillars or outbuildings, should be positioned in pairs on either side of the main structure. This symmetry symbolizes balance and is the design principle guiding the creation and placement of these pillars on either side of the amphitheater.
Lantern 25: Blissful Wedding
The wedding banquet marks the conclusion of the elaborate traditional Chinese wedding ceremony, which also includes a processional from the bride’s home to the groom’s. In Chinese society, the wedding banquet is sometimes considered more important than the actual wedding itself and features such important ceremonies as the bride’s presentation of wine or tea to her parents, her new in-laws, her spouse, and their guests.
Lantern 26: Qilin
Qilins are rare creatures composed of different animal forms, some real and some mythical. They look fierce, but they are peaceful creatures that can walk on grass without harming it and can even walk on water. Qilins are said to appear in areas ruled by wise and kind leaders. Although normally gentle, they are quick to defend the righteous against evil by sprouting flames from their mouths, making them symbols of protection, success, and longevity.
Like several others, this lantern was not made from traditional materials; it was made out of glass. This paired with the elaborate designs made it one of my favorites.
I hope that you enjoyed these lanterns as much as I did. It is always exciting learning about other cultures, especially if it is through art.
Tidbits 