Chinese Art Projects

Red often appears on Chinese art because it is the color of luck.

The Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year for the completion of a year and the start of a New Year. During this time, there are traditions such as giving children and adults who are not married "lucky money" in red envelopes. The Chinese also visit family members and bring red bags filled with oranges and sweets. Many homes are decorated festively in red to welcome the new year and wish good health, wealth and fortune to their family. There are a variety of decorative Chinese arts projects family members can do together.

Bowl of Oranges and Tangerines Collage

Create art that symbolizes wealth and good luck with oranges and tangerines.

Oranges are a symbol of wealth and tangerines are a symbol of good luck for the Chinese. Make a fruit bowl of wealth and good luck through an art collage. Select a sheet of paper to serve as your background for the collage, one red sheet of construction paper, and three to four sheets of orange color shades of paper with different textures.

On the red paper, draw an outline for a bowl. On the orange sheets of paper, draw the outline of oranges and tangerines. You can use the base of a round can to help make an outline. Cut out the outlines. Place the patterns on the construction paper to design the look of your fruit bowl. When placement is complete, lift the bowl pattern up and place glue behind it. Carefully lay the glue side down to where you originally had it. Gently peel up the fruit patterns, starting with the ones closest contact to the background paper just enough to get glue behind it, one by one. After gluing the various layers of fruits, your collage is complete.

Chinese Paper Lantern

Gather together several Chinese paper lanterns to hang up and you will have festive art decorating your room.

Chinese New Year celebrations typically end with the Lantern Festival. A parade forms with dragon dances, and children and adults come out in the evening with a variety of lanterns. Paper lanterns may also be made to hang at home for decoration.

Cut 1 inch off the short side of a colored sheet of construction paper. It will serve as the handle for the paper lantern. Fold the remaining piece of paper in half, lengthwise. On the long side of the paper where the folded opening is, draw a line 1 inch from the edge across the length of the paper.

Lay the paper on the table with the line drawn sitting horizontal at the top. Draw lines 1 inch apart across the length of the paper vertically, starting at the horizontal line. Cut the lines drawn, stopping at the horizontal line. Unfold the paper and refold it along the same crease on the opposite side. Open the paper and connect the edge of the short side of the paper together with glue or tape. Along the top edge of the horizontal line, staple one side of the handle piece. Stretch the other end of the handle piece over the lantern opening and then staple it along the top edge of the horizontal line. Make a lantern in every color to hang in your home for a festive look.

Chinese Firecracker

Loop together several Chinese firecracker art designs for decorative art to hang up.

Chinese festivities for the New Year start with loud drumming and firecrackers. Paint a toilet paper tube red. When dry, use gold paint for decorations. There are many options on how to decorate it, including drawing the animal of the year, adding blossoms and writing a greeting. Make several firecrackers, then loop them together and you will have decorative firecrackers like the ones used to celebrate Chinese New Year.

Chinese Hat

Celebrate Chinese New Year by designing a festive Chinese beanie hat.

The Chinese beanie hats are still seen worn by the people guiding the dragon dances. Make your own with a paper bowl or recycled instant noodle bowl. Position the bowl bottom side up. At the center of the bowl bottom, draw vertical lines down to divide the bowl into an even number of sections. Four or six is ideal. Using black and red paint (other Chinese traditional colors include gold, yellow and blue), paint each section alternating colors.

While the bowl is set to dry, cut 2 inches of black felt or craft foam to go along the base of the hat. When the paint is dry, place glue along base of the hat to adhere the black felt or craft foam. Using a small marble-sized red or black ball, bell or rolled-up yarn, glue it to the center of the top of the hat. Your new Chinese hat is complete.

References

• Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco: Celebration of the Chinese New Year
• Artists Helping Children: Asian Crafts for Kids

Resources

• ActivityVillage.co.uk: Chinese New Year