Photographer's Note
Lion Dancers Facing Exploding Firecrackers at the Chinese New Year Celebration, New Chinatown, Argyle St., Chicago, January 2004
Not only the lion dancers at yesterday's Chinese New Year celebration had to elude the firecrackers but also the heavy snow fall that the city experienced.
Argyle St. on the northside of Chicgo is dubbed as the New Chinatown as the street is lined with Vietnamese (mostly ethnic Chinese) shops. Every Chinese New Year as part of the celebration, every shop hangs firecrackers on their door, the lion dancers journey from shop to shop (to be fed, usually for money), after which they go outside and perform their dance in front of the exploding firecrackers. The gist of the ceremony is that the noise of the firecrackers, along with the drum music and the fierceness of the lion supposedly scare evil spirits away for spiritual cleaning to start the New Year.
Yesterday's celebration was special because it was heavily snowing the whole time while the parade was going on, while the lion dancers went shop to shop, and while the firecrackers were popping from one end of the street to the other, about four city blocks altogether.
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Critiques | Translate
dovi
(1068) 2004-01-25 12:31
Very iteresting shot, and your note makes it easier to understand, I like the lino on the left which captures very well the dynamic action of these two dancers, I'm afraid that most of the left side including the other lion dancers is not clear enough and does not add any to the shot, I'd crop it out!
ambibo1
(40) 2004-01-25 20:04
KUNG HEI FAT CHOY! The colors, the snow, the movement - I can almost hear the noise and smell the firecrackers. Very cool pic Ken. My best wishes for an auspicious Year of the Monkey.
Liora
(1857) 2004-01-25 22:09
I just posted the NYC version of the same event... and I thought I was brave standing in today's chill... wow...
The photo is very good - captures the motion, the scene and the general atmosphere..
freddd
(435) 2004-01-30 14:55
Fantastic image! There's a lot of action here and the mix of snowfall and firecracker explosion is terrific. The supermaket cart just add more strangeness to the scene. I Like it very much.
roconnell
(327) 2004-02-01 14:18
Cold day in Chinatown. The smoke provides a soft background and helps the Lion dancers stand out. I like the sense of motion with the dancer's leg sticking out in a step. Well done.
Photo Information
-
Copyright: Ken Ilio (flip89)
(3418)
- Genre: ÌÅÑÒÀ
- Medium: ÖÂÅÒÍÎÉ
- Date Taken: 2004-01-24
- Categories: ÔÅÑÒÈÂÀËÈ
- Camera: Olympus C-730UZ
- Exposure: f/4, 1/400 ñåêóíä
- Âåðñèÿ: Îðèãèíàëüíàÿ âåðñèÿ
- Òåìû: Lion... like my name!, Chinese New Year..., X-treme places for UFO landing [view contributor(s)]
- Date Submitted: 2004-01-25 10:29