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On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year,
the center of every town, city and village in China glows with
the light from hundreds of paper lanterns. The Shang Yuan festival
(or lantern festival) draws families from their homes into the
packed streets to bask in the auspicious red light of the new
year. Riddles are written and solved and yuan xiao or sticky
rice dumplings are eaten to celebrate harmony and happiness in
every family.
The family in Mian Situ’s Preparing for the Festival,
San Francisco, 1904 is a long way from China, but love and a
pioneering spirit keep these important traditions alive in the
land they now call home. Situ specifically composed this painting
for and donated it to the silent auction at the 20th Anniversary
Autry Gala, where the winning bid reached $150,000. |