By MOOK Scenic Spots Editorial Department, compiled and reported
The main lantern of the 2018 Taipei Lantern Festival has officially made its debut. Named "Happy Magic Dog," the lantern stands 5 meters tall, approximately three stories high including the base, and features a design composed of three adorable Taiwanese dogs holding hands in a circle.
The three dogs represent a fusion of local Taiwanese values and intergenerational heritage, symbolizing the pursuit of happiness with “all one’s might”! (Photo / 2018 Taipei Lantern Festival, the same applies below)
The golden Happy Dog “Go Forward” features a majestic ocean totem as its backdrop, showcasing Taiwan’s coexistence with the sea and fearlessness in the face of storms. The silver Happy Dog “Go Together” uses a square totem as its background, symbolizing Taipei’s inclusiveness toward friends from all directions. The red Happy Dog “Go Future” features a Ketagalan tribe totem as its backdrop, drawing inspiration from indigenous culture and incorporating diverse totems to connect the past and future.
The main lantern was jointly designed by director Yu Yi and Chen Zhengshou.
In addition to the Ximen performance area where the main lantern is located, there are also nine other lantern zones: the Beimen performance area featuring the Beimen light sculpture, the landscape light sea zone, the urban art gallery zone, the free creation zone, the blessing lantern zone, the student creation zone, the friendship exchange zone, and the Nishi Honganji Temple creation zone.
Beimen performance area.
With the completion of the renovation of Beimen Square and the revitalization of nearby historical sites from the Japanese colonial period such as the “Railway Ministry,” “Taipei Post Office,” “Osaka Trading Company,” and “Mitsui Warehouse,” as well as Qing Dynasty structures like the “Futai Street Western House” and “Machine Bureau,” the national first-class historic site, Beimen Gate, takes center stage in a historical time-travel drama performed during the day (as a historical architectural landmark) and at night (through light sculpture storytelling).
Twenty Taiwanese dog silhouette lanterns surround Beimen Square, with the little dog silhouettes changing with the lights, displaying movements like chasing, running, playing, and jumping.
A key highlight of this year’s lantern festival is the integration of various themed creative lantern zones designed by young Taiwanese artists, showcasing even more creative blends of trend and tradition, as well as environmentalism and technology. Each lantern zone is paired with performance activities, turning Ximending into a large-scale “street music hall.”
The blessing lantern zone installation “Ximen City Battlements” recreates the imagery of the once-glorious old walls of Ximen (Baoying Gate).
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