Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Wanderings: Xīn nián kuài lè! (Happy New Year!)

(Ed. note: Let's all extend a warm welcome to Michelle Campbell-Zurek, the creative mind behind Urban Junkies and a new member of the POE blog writing team!)

I'm on the prowl searching through all of the lovely POE shops and stalking each and every one of you! It is amazing to see all of the wonderful talent that exists in this group. All of the unique perspectives conveyed in one perfect little box full of colors, light and imagination.



Chinese Temple - ModernClassicsPaper

I love travel photography and it is great to see the many interpretations of the world we live in. From sunny glossy beaches and haunting landscapes to spice jars and trinkets from distant lands, each POE member speaks their own language through their work.


This Wall is Great - LittlePetal


A Sip of China - LazyFish

For my first travel post in the "Wanderings" series, I thought it would be great to do one celebrating Chinese New Year. 2009 is the Year of the Ox. The Ox is the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. The festival begins on January 26, 2009, the first day of the first lunar month, and it ends on the 15th day with the Lantern Festival.

My mom is from Taiwan so for me, Chinese New Year is a time for red packets of money (hung bao), dragons, lanterns, firecrackers and delicious red bean cakes. While searching through the POE collection, I found several beautiful images that remind me of this holiday.



Chinatown Cats - poofny



Happy Dragon - mrrojasphoto


Chinese New Year Kuala Lumpur - elephantdreams



Chinese New Year Cards-Year of the Ox - eyeshoot

And to help ensure you will have a happy and prosperous new year, keep these facts in mind!
  • Air out your house -- open the windows & doors to bring in Good Luck.
  • It's ok, grab that cupcake! Eat sweets to ensure a "sweet" year.
  • Stomp those haters -- wear a new pair of slippers bought before the new year so you can step on the people that gossip about you.
  • Never mind the housework -- it's bad luck to sweep your floors on the first day. It will sweep away good luck & fortune!
  • Don't list photos in groups of 4 -- in Chinese, the pronunciation of the number 4 is very similar to the word for "death", so don't offer anything in fours.
  • Appreciate nature! Grab one of each:

Pink Velvet-eleanors
(Peach Blossoms = Luck)


Mum in White-lawatha
(Chrysanthemums = Longevity)


Sunflower-Celticcatphotos
(Sunflowers = to have a good year)

And of course, don't forget the lucky bamboo!


Bamboo-parduepictures



Michelle Campbell-Zurek is an artist/photographer from the east coast who is wide-eyed and smitten with the crazy town called L. A. When not on a quest to capture light and stop time, she can be found painting and ingesting gobs of sweets & tea. All are welcome to stop by the Urban Junkies Artist Lounge, as well as Michelle's photography shop, art shop and website.

18 comments:

Alison Du Bois said...

What a lovely post, Michelle, and great selections! So glad you have joined the blog writing team!

Anonymous said...

Lovely, lovely, lovely photographs. Happy New Year!

Pam said...

Wow what an awesome first post. Beautiful choices. Welcome to the writing team!

Happy Chinese New Year!

~Pam
http://www.alwaysartistic.etsy.com

From My Eye said...

What a wonderful post and fabulous selection of images! Happy New Year!

Unknown said...

Lovely and well done first post! Congratulations Michelle!

Ann Wilkinson said...

fantastic article, Michelle! welcome to the POE blog. Love your selections and your writing.

eyeshoot said...

Great blog post and thanks everso for showing off my cards! I live in Manchester in the UK where we have the largest Chinatown outside of London and the big event and parade is always really fun here.

myan said...

aww, thank you guys SO much for reading it & for your super sweet comments! you guys are the best!! :)
happy new year!

Jaimee McClellan said...

Wonderful article...and I'm not just saying that for being included :) Thanks again and I look forward to reading more of your work.

TheEye said...

Congrats on your first article... I look forward to reading more from you.

ruth hill radcliffe said...

your photos for Chinese New Year are wonderful and take me back to Kuala Lumpur where I was lucky to celebrate the holiday with my Chinese friends. In Malaysian we say gong xi Fa cai and give out Ang pow....and eat marvelous food. You captured this spirit through words and images. Thank you.

Amy said...

What a great first post!I love it! O lordy i have three listings for sets of four prints!!AHHH. Cant to read more from you.
新年快樂

cukie6 said...

Very cool! I love Urban Junkies!

Jesspeterson said...

Fab post... so informative! Happy New Year to everyone... again.

lawatha said...

Happy New Year! Beautiful photos- thank you for including my chrysanthemum.

Wanderlust Designs Photography said...

Great Post! and Xin nian kuai le! You have found some amazing photos! Thanks for sharing!!

Anonymous said...

Revealing post, beautiful choices. Did not know peach tree stands for luck in China - good to know! Thanks for featuring my photograph, Michelle! Happy New Year!

Fly The Friendly Skies said...

Such amazing photos! I love it! Thanks for including my photo!!! Happy Chinese New Year!