The Fresno Chaffee Zoo celebrated the Lunar New Year by hosting a special “IllumiNature Lunar New Year Celebration” event on Feb. 10 to honor the cultural history of Asia while ushering in hope for a luck-filled new year.
This is the year of the dragon, one of the main focuses of the celebration. In Chinese culture, the dragon is one of the 12 zodiac animals symbolizing good fortune, power and prosperity. Being born in the year of the dragon exudes characteristics of charisma, sharp intellect, confidence and power.
With these symbolic attributes in mind, the Fresno Chaffee Zoo displayed a life-sized dragons with golden scales and a brightly colored face radiating confidence and power throughout the IllumiNature event.
IlluminNature is a special cultural holiday event that the Fresno Chaffee Zoo holds every year to display the culture of Asia to the community of Fresno. As the name suggests it brings illumination of nature throughout the zoo.
With decorated pathways of handmade Chinese lanterns and colorful animal and plant-shaped themed lanterns lit up the zoo at night in celebration of the Lunar New Year.
Through the pathways you not only see the decorations but also hear the sounds of joy from the guests as they admired the illuminated displays.
Going down one of the many illuminated paths, you can reach the zoo’s newest exhibit, Kingdoms of Asia, where artwork from local artists and bonsai trees were on display.
The exhibit, themed after the Buddhist temple Angkor Wat in Cambodia, was the backdrop for paintings, statues and more created by artists like Fresno State students Olivia Myracle and Miguel Gamez-Macias who are members of the Art History Club at Fresno State. This was their first year participating with the Fresno Chaffee Zoo.
The Clark Bonsai Collection from the Shinzen Friendship Garden at Woodward Park was also there. Members showed bonsai trees and educated festival goers about how the use of copper wire along the branches allows the tree to grow and mold itself into the desired shape.
The Illuminature Lunar New Year Celebration also featured cultural dance performances throughout the day. The event went into the night so families could enjoy the large lantern display and see them light up in the dark.
