Seattle Lunar New Year 2024
In Chinese tradition, the cabbage represents wealth and prosperity. During Lunar New Year, it’s customary for the lion dancers to visit numerous local businesses to perform “cai qing,” which translates to “plucking the green.” Their rhythmic and acrobatic dance from business to business hunting for the prosperous cabbage, followed by a dragon, drums, firecrackers, and a crowd of people almost reminiscent of a fairy tale. The cabbage and its representation of wealth and prosperity are almost surreal, as Chinatown is seemingly sort of treated like a redheaded stepchild. CID (Chinatown International District) is arguably the most culturally dense neighborhood within Seattle, It’s met with economic struggles and a seemingly lack of care and nurturing from the city. Despite this, the neighborhood is still so visually and culturally rich and It’s really nice to see CID full of this burst of energy I felt during the Lunar New Year celebration.
-Marcellus
At the heart of the Lunar New Year celebrations around Seattle is the Mak Fai Kung Fu and Lion Dance Club. This was my second year photographing them and I was left feeling very impressed by their skill and hard work. The people in this club are awesome and their kindness in letting themselves be photographed up close has left me feeling very grateful. I want to give them a special thank you. If you are interested in learning more about what they do, HERE is a link to their website.
The celebrations took place all around Seattle throughout the month of February. The biggest celebration happened during the last Saturday of the month in Seattle's Chinatown.
The size of the crowds felt larger this year as compared to last year. The challenge (in my experience) with these types of events with such large crowds is in dissecting out small scenes that are photogenic. I've often found the best moments happen along the periphery of the main attraction
From a photographic perspective, this event was further development in my own personal practice of letting scenes and moments present themselves to me. My favorite photographs have always presented themselves to me as a little gift if I am paying attention.
