The New Year is weeks past and so is the holiday season, with all its pretty lights displays, right? Not quite! In celebration of the upcoming Lunar New Year, the Kennedy Center is hosting an Asian Winter Lanterns exhibit that features thousands of lights that create stunning pieces of art. Best of all, the winter lanterns display is free!
About The REACH
In September 2019, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, debuted The REACH, its first major expansion since the 1970s. Featuring art studios, a large outdoor exhibit space, hands-on experiences, and more. Intended to be an open, inclusive art experience for the community at large, The REACH provides dozens of free events each week.
Comedy, art demonstrations, discussions, music, and children’s activities are among the many offerings. On any given week, guest might find a hip-hop show, opera class, or film screening.
About the Winter Lantern Display
With Winter Lanterns, Thursdays through Sundays from Jan. 22 to Feb. 2, 2020, The REACH will make use of its large outdoor space to display approximately 100 lanterns made up of 10,000 colorful LED lights. Various themes include Chinese Four Symbols and 12 Zodiac Signs, Panda Grove, and Mushroom Garden display.
Along with the lantern display, there will be performances and artisan demonstrations. Food trucks will be onsite as well. Because of the outdoor nature of the exhibit, the REACH Winter Lanterns will be open in any weather condition. All activities are free and the exhibits are open from 5:30–10:30 pm Thursdays through Saturdays and 4–9:30 p.m on Sundays.
Winter Lanterns looks to be a great opportunity to learn about Asian art and the Lunar New Year while enjoying beautiful light displays. The free admission will be a great benefit for families who may skipped similar exhibits: DC-area lantern displays from recent years have come with admission prices for kids and adults of $15-25 each or more.
All photos (c) P. Hall. The photos are from similar events and included here for representative purposes and are not indicative of the actual displays at The REACH.
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