2025 Beijing Thousand-Lantern Festival: Intangible Cultural Heritage Colored Lanterns from Zigong Come to Beijing, Illum

On December 28, 2024, the "2025 Beijing Thousand-Lantern Night" grandly kicked off at the West Garden of Chaoyang Demonstration Zone in Beijing Wenyu River Park. Running until March 2025, it brings an extraordinary visual feast to the capital, spanning the New Year, Spring Festival and Lantern Festival.

This Thousand-Lantern Festival is a comprehensive upgrade of the first "Wenyu Thousand-Lantern Festival". Within a 600-mu (approximately 400,000 square meters) area, over 1,000 groups of colored lanterns from Zigong have made a stunning appearance. As an intangible cultural heritage craft, Zigong colored lanterns are renowned as the "Pearl of Oriental Art". Crafted meticulously by more than 600 artisans, they present an breathtakingly beautiful effect.

The lantern fair features four chapters and eight themed areas. The four chapters are "Encountering Fairyland", "Encountering Splendor", "Encountering Prosperity" and "Encountering the Future". Among them, "Dragon and Snake Celebrating the New Year" brings New Year blessings, "Fairyland Adventure" makes ancient myths come alive in the light and shadow, "Treasures of the Great Nation" tells the precipitation of history, and "Charm of Jinghua" shows the unique charm of the capital.

The "King of Lanterns", modeled after the Qing Dynasty Qianlong Golden Inlaid Pearl Celestial Globe, is 15 meters high and 40 meters long, and was created by 50 intangible cultural heritage craftsmen in 20 days, which is extremely shocking. There also lantern groups that integrate technology, game and trendy play elements, such as the lantern groups of well - known IPs like Pop Mart and Honor of Kings. Here, modernity and tradition collide.

Walking among them, the colorful lights are intertwined, making people feel as if they are in a dreamland, intoxicated by the unique charm created by these intangible cultural heritage lanterns.