Sydney City Council has placed twelve giant Zodiac lanterns around Circular Quay, Haymarket and the CBD from February 12-21 for visitors to enjoy.
The 'waving Ox' says welcome to the new year
To usher in the new year, the 'waving Ox' sculptures, created by Chinese-Australian illustrator Chrissy Lau is the main feature of the offering.
The 'waving Ox' was inspired by the Japanese Maneki-Neko waving cats.
Although they're Japanese, they have been incorporated into Chinese culture. You can see them adorned in Chinese shops, especially near the cashiers.
For Ms Lau, a waving Ox appeared in her takeaway restaurant as well. She shares her childhood memories with SBS Chinese.
"When I was little, I always sit near the cashier and wait for my parents to finish their work.
"I stared at a cute, fat cat with big eyes waving back to me. This was one of my most important childhood memories. The 'waving Ox' creates a sense of nostalgia from your childhood."
"It was important to create something that was beautiful to attract people and kids, yet there are also deeper symbolic meanings within the patterns and pieces, for example, the red packets with the 'fu' fortune Chinese word on them, the cloud patterns are Chinese and represent good fortune and auspiciousness," she explains.
Chrissy Lau and her waving Ox. Source: Screenshot (City of Sydney)
"The sketching, planning and build process has been on and off over the past year. The actual build of the 2x2.4m lanterns took about 10 weeks - they were made by Gorilla Constructions. I provided the initial sketches and also created the pattern files. It was a really fascinating process."
Ms Lau grew up in the UK city of Hull, however, she has a deep connection with Hong Kong, Cantonese and Hakka culture.
Chrissy Lau. Source: Supplied (Chrissy Lau)
"Dad was born in China ... Dad moved to Hong Kong when he was 10 and juggled school with working as a delivery boy, in yum cha restaurants and toy factories. In 1979 he emigrated to England to work as a cook then he opened his own Chinese takeaway.
"My mum was born in Hong Kong and moved to England when she was 13 years old. They both speak Hakka and Cantonese. Therefore I can speak Hakka fluently."
From her memories, she says: "My first impression [of Hong Kong] was that it was a busy, bustling place with lots of different smells and the humidity and typhoons were so intense as we visited during Summertime."
"I remember it being the complete opposite of my home city of Hull, England. The main thing I remember was the yum cha restaurants, how you come in from the humidity into a noisy, freezing cold air-conditioned restaurant full of delicious food and yum cha carts."
Some of Chrissy Lau's artworks. Source: Supplied (Chrissy Lau)
Despite being an awarded artist, she also has expertise in the legal world.
"I have been very fascinated by cases and criminology since I was a child, but I was disillusioned in the first week after I was admitted to the law department of the university, and I knew that I was not interested in this.
"Later, I encountered an illustration job opportunity outside of large institutions, such as the Royal Australian Mint, The Sydney Lunar New Year of the Dragon Celebration and the Australian Post Office and resolutely changed my career."
Ms Lau said her father had the greatest influence on her.
Ms Lau designed Australia Post's set of new stamps to celebrate the Year of the Ox. Source: Supplied (Chrissy Lau)
"My dad is really hardworking and is a great problem solver. He's very good at teaching himself to do anything even without YouTube, which inspired me to pursue my career in illustration. I'm self-taught in illustration and he showed me that with grit and determination you can do anything."
In 2007, Ms Lau came to Australia for a holiday and met her husband, and she decided to make a permanent move to Sydney.
Now they have a happy family with two sons.
During Lunar New Year, she plans to celebrate with her family members by eating traditional dumplings, and by visiting her waving Ox lanterns in Chinatown.
