Organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government and co-organized by the Department of Culture and Education of the Liaison Office of the Central Government in the Macao S.A.R., the Centre for Ethnic and Folk Literature and Art Development of the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China, the Department of Culture of Guangdong Province and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Intangible Cultural Heritage Office of the Leisure and Cultural Service Department of the Government of the Hong Kong S.A.R., and supported by the Office for Cultural Affairs with the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Regions of the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China, the exhibition “Spring Breeze to the Southern Greenly Land – Exhibition of the Lunar New Year Traditions of Guangdong Province, Hong Kong S.A.R. and Macao S.A.R.” will be inaugurated on Wednesday, 25 January, at 6:30pm, at the Temporary Exhibitions Gallery of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau. The opening ceremony is open to the general public. In conjunction with the theme of this exhibition, the Cultural Affairs Bureau will also organize a lecture entitled “Guangdong Spring Festival Celebration”. All residents are welcome to register.
This exhibition will feature hundreds of exhibits related to the Spring Festival (Lunar New Year) traditions in Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macao. The Guangdong Province section will feature various kinds of exhibits such as Nianhua wood engraving (New Year woodblock prints), lanterns featuring realistic images, exquisite paper cuts, carved olive pits, Yangjiang kites, hand-made glass bead embroidery, clay sculptures, regional opera costumes, as well as Yao ethnic costumes and accessories. Hong Kong, despite being a modern and cosmopolitan city where Eastern and Western cultures merge, has retained many ancient customs.This exhibition features, for instance, boat rowing ritual exhibits from the Tai Ping Hung Chiu ceremony held in the rural areas of Hong Kong’s New Territories, as well as Wong Tai Sin divination cylinders and sticks, newborn male baby lanterns used in ancestral halls, the Hakka unicorn (qilin), the pinwheel from Che Kung Temple in Sha Tin, posters and flyers of various Cantonese opera performances, among other unique items. With regard to Macao, where the exhibition will be held, various images of the times when the city was a small riverside village will also be featured, as well as some traditional Lunar New Year items, such as piggy banks, calendars, firecrackers, fireworks, red packets (Lai Si), candy boxes, among other items reminiscent of times past.
In conjunction with the theme of the exhibition, the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) will also organize a lecture entitled “Guangdong Spring Festival Celebration”, conducted by Prof. Liu Xiaochun, a researcher at the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Research Centre and a professor at the Chinese Department of Sun Yat-sen University, who will analyze the five cultural regions of Guangdong Province and the various Lunar New Year traditions of each region that make up the culture of Lingnan. The lecture, conducted in Mandarin, will be held on 11 and 12 February (Saturday and Sunday), from 3:30pm to 4:30pm, at the Iong Sam Tong Pavilion in Lou Lim Ioc Garden. Admission is free. All interested parties are welcome to register online through IC’s Activity Registration System (www.icm.gov.mo/eform/event) from today. Seats are limited and are available on a first come, first served basis.
The exhibition “Spring Breeze to the Southern Greenly Land – Exhibition of the Lunar New Year Traditions of Guangdong Province, Hong Kong S.A.R. and Macao S.A.R.” will be held from 26 January to 19 February at the Temporary Exhibitions Gallery of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau, located at No. 163, Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro, and at the Chun Chou Tong Pavilion of Lou Lim Ioc Garden, located at No. 10, Estrada Adolfo Loureiro. Admission is free. The exhibition is open daily from 9:00am to 7:00pm, including public holidays. For enquiries about the exhibition and lecture, please contact IC through tel. no. 8988 4000 during office hours.