Artist celebrates Lantern Festival with exhibition

To celebrate the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month, artist Qiu Zhijie is hosting a unique lantern festival at Yongqingfang, a historical complex in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

At the exhibition, Qiu combines his calligraphy art with the traditional lantern riddles, and hangs the lanterns on the streets frequented by tourists.

The exhibition draws inspiration from an ancient painting from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) entitled "Picture of Colored Lanterns in Lantern Festival" that depicts a scene of a crowded market during the festival.

Qiu is director of the School of Experimental Art at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, and hosted the "To the People, Food is the First Necessity" exhibition at the Sanyuanli market in Beijing last year.

"Qiu Zhijie's calligraphy project will continue to embrace life and the people," Zhang Weina, curator of the exhibition, said. The five-day exhibition ends on Feb 16.