Taking On The World, One Creation At A Time
We would like to show our respect and acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land, on which our creativity takes place.
We respectfully acknowledge the Darug and Eora people who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we create.
THE DRAGON8R FLAGS CITY OF SYDNEY 2024 - Hay Street & Sussex Street, Chinatown Haymarket.
The Dragon8r (Dragon'eight'or) are 6 dragons with bodies in the shape of the lucky Chinese number 8, 8 sounds like fortune in Chinese. Each flag is filled with lucky, auspicious elements seen during the celebration of the lunar new year. The colour palette is inspired by Asian architecture and Sydney's bright city lights. The design is a contemporary, graphic style which reflects Sydney's dynamic Arts & Culture scene. The tone is bright and fresh, created for all ages and cultures to enjoy at a quick glance or to linger and decipher all the symbolism in the designs.
L-R: Flag 1: inspired by Sydney's food scene - Dragon's chopstick pokes a dumpling symbolising the celebratory feasts alongside longevity noodles and golden fortune-filled mandarins, longevity knot charms and golden coins attract wealth and fortune for the new year. Flag 2: Dragon holds a longevity knot charm as a symbol of long life and has an Ang Bao filled with money. Flag 3: Dragon holds a gold coin and longevity knot decoration to attract wealth and fortune to Sydney. It is highly prestigious for children to be born in the Year of the Dragon because dragons symbolise power, luck and success - the belief is these children will exude these traits and be successful in life. Flag 4: Lucky dragon boy with firecrackers to ward off evil spirits rides Dragon. Flag 5: Lucky dragon boy and girl ride the Dragon. Flag 6. Lucky dragon girl plays with her LNY lantern.
8 Horses coin designed for the Royal Australian Mint - click here to see more of the Zodiac collection
YEAR OF THE RABBIT 2023 - GEORGES RIVER COUNCIL
7.3m x 2.44m mural - McMahon Street, Hurstville. Inspired by Chinese Feng Shui painting '8 Horses' displayed across Asia to attract wealth and fortune.
'FUN, RABBIT, FUN, RABBIT, FUN, FUN, FUN' is a mural of 8 lucky rabbits adorned with lucky lunar new year symbols. What does it all mean?
Red is a lucky colour in Chinese culture. Gold represents wealth and fortune. Clouds are auspicious. Chinese cabbage/cai represents fortune. Chinese red packets are handed out to children during LNY celebrations - quite exciting for children as they receive money in the red envelopes. Gold ingots, coins and mandarins are displayed during LNY as they represent wealth and fortune. Lanterns and dumplings are enjoyed during the celebrations. The rabbits wear longevity locks/necklaces as a sign of a long life. One rabbit dances with Chinese plum blossoms - these flourish in harsh, cold weather and are a sign of perseverance.
Australia Post has commissioned Chrissy Lau to create their Lunar New Year stamp collection following the success of the Year of the Ox 2021 stamp collection. The brief was to create an entirely new style with no reference to the Ox collection.
The Lucky Tiger 2022 stamp collection is inspired by the Japanese Maneki-Neko beckoning waving cats that have been adopted into Asian and Western culture, often displayed in homes and businesses to bring good luck and fortune to their owners.
The tigers are fun and contemporary, designed to make you smile and feel warm & fuzzy. They are a celebration of East meets West because of the familiarity of beckoning cats displayed in every day life: picking up a Sweet 'n' Sour from the local Chinese takeaway or wandering the aisles of the Dollar Store. Whether you're in Australia or China you'll smile and feel nostalgic when you see these beckoning tigers.
Above all the designs are created to celebrate multiculturalism, on the superficial surface the designs can be appreciated by any age, no matter their knowledge of Asian culture. On a deeper level the designs are full of Chinese/Asian inspired symbolism that can be appreciated by the eye of the beholder.
The collection can be viewed as an educational art project because the beauty draws you in and you can also learn more about deeper meaningful symbols within Chinese/Asian culture.
Click here to learn more about the design process and inspiration.
THE WAVING OX - CITY OF SYDNEY
Award-winning artist Ms Lau took inspiration for her ox lantern design from the Japanese Maneki-neko beckoning cat which has been adopted into Asian culture. “I grew up in a Chinese takeaway shop my parents ran in the north of England and there were lucky cats on the counter, so for me the design has a great sense of nostalgia, as well as being a nod to multicultural Australia. Delve deeper into the making of The Waving Ox here.
Chrissy Lau with Lord Mayor Clover Moore. Credit: Renee Nowytarger/City of Sydney
Credit: City of Sydney
NEWS: Longlisted in the World Illustration Awards 2020
Johnnie Walker BLUE Label Year of the Pig / Sydney Opera House / Commonwealth Bank / KINDER / Marie Claire Magazine / Adopt Change/ Chinese New Year Stamps Guernsey Philatelic / BBC + VR CITY
Samsung / Mambo / Royal Australian Mint / City of Sydney / Artline / Maxus Rocketman/ Asian of Oz / Pastai / Dare To Dream / Orange Mobile / Men's Health / AvantCard / Pikka / Nugit / La La Land / Women's Weekly / Elle Girl / Virgin / A Magazine / Restaurant Business Mag / Urban Walkabout / Technicolour Dreams / Red Magazine / Accessory Hunter / Gary Pepper Vintage / Smiggle / Inked / Artboardz / Pocketto Magazine / Jetstar / Filmme Fatales / Banyan / Samso / Seattle Met Magazine / Cincinnati Magazine
STORYBOX - My Father's Story
Celebrating the life of Chi-Hoi Lau 1949-2021, born in China in the Year of the Ox.
Traditionally in Chinese culture birthdays are celebrated by eating a red, hard-boiled egg. The egg symbolises birth or new beginnings. The red symbolises fortune and prosperity.
Aged 10 Chi-Hoi climbed a mountain, crossed a river and hopped the border into Hong Kong to escape poverty. At 19, with one suitcase he migrates to England in pursuit of fortune and prosperity.
My Dad was a man of grit and determination.
An inspirational migrant story for me and I hope for you.
Dipping into the world of gifs #cryptoart
