On January 28th, Chargé d'Affaires of the Chinese Embassy, Madam Xu Xueyuan attended the 2023 Chinese New Year Celebration co-hosted by Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the US, sending festival greetings to over 10000 people at the event.

  In her opening remarks, Xu expressed her appreciation for the unremitting efforts of the American Art Museum to carry on the tradition of presenting Chinese New Year celebration in partnership with the Embassy and host the 9th event this year. She was glad to see local talents and art groups presenting cultural performances and crafts demonstration. She believed that the audience will feel the festival atmosphere and obtain a better understanding of Chinese culture through these wonderful in-person programs.

  Xu sent Chinese New Year greetings to the audience. She quoted the rabbit officer Judy Hopps in the Disney movie Zootopia: “I implore you to try. The more we try to understand one another, the more exceptional each of us will be.” and encouraged the guests to experience the Spring Festival customs and appreciate the beauty of cultural diversity.

  Director Stephanie Stebich, in her welcoming remarks, thanked the Embassy for supporting and participating in the Chinese New Year Celebration event, and looked forward to more collaboration with the Chinese Embassy in the future.

  The museum's courtyard was lighted up with Spring Festival decorations, such as red lanterns, Chinese knots, paper-cut patterns for windows and Happy Chinese New Year posters. Local artists presented various performances and interactive activities: on the stage, art groups performed lion dance, Chinese traditional dance and diabolo tricks. In the activity zone, green screen photo booth, clay sculpture tutorial, traditional wood-carved painting printing, Chinese painting and calligraphy, Chinese video game trial, New Year good-wish card hand-out gave the audience a dazzling and immersive experience of the Chinese New Year celebration.  

  This is the ninth Chinese New Year Celebration jointly presented by the Museum and the Chinese Embassy in the US.