The Ocean International Lantern Festival 2025, themed “Light of the East”, runs from now until March 16, 2025. It is an opportunity to celebrate the traditional art of lanterns and connect the international community through light and colour.
The highlight of this year's festival is the Ocean International Lantern Design Competition, which brings together nine groups of artisans from Vietnam and teams from countries such as Korea, Japan, and Thailand.
The team with the youngest member
Winning the Encouragement Prize at the competition, the work "Lac Long Quan returns" is 20m long and 8m high and belongs to Thanh Tuyen Color Team. The team comes from Tuyen Quang - famous for Thanh Tuyen Festival with hundreds of giant lantern models parading on the streets. This is the team with the youngest artist in the competition: Pham Hai Anh, born in 2007.
Ms. Dang Thi Thu Huong, Hai Anh’s mother, said that she comes from a family with a 20-year tradition of making lanterns. Ms. Huong’s family has moved from making small star lanterns for children to making large models.
Ms. Huong shared: "We want to represent our province, bringing the unique features of Tuyen Quang to domestic and foreign tourists. Through this contest, I hope that friends from all over the world will come to Thanh Tuyen Festival in the near future."
Ms. Huong shared that the work "Lac Long Quan returns" is equipped with a 10W gear motor, helping mascot models such as the smoke-breathing dragon move smoothly. In addition, the model can also spray smoke at the dragon's head and behind the Lac Long Quan lantern.
The production cost was up to 400 million VND, not including 30 million VND to rent two container trucks for transportation.
Ms. Huong confided: "Although I have participated in many lantern festivals, this is the first time I have participated in an international competition. This is an opportunity for me to learn a lot of experience and new techniques from other teams."
Contributing to the creation of the "Lac Long Quan returns" model is Pham Hai Anh, the youngest artisan, born in 2007. Hai Anh and other members of the team came up with the idea, in which he played a key role in designing the 3D model for this giant lantern cluster.
Hai Anh said: "Making lanterns is my passion. After school, I start making lanterns. The group of 10 people worked continuously to complete the model in a month."
Hai Anh said this is the largest lantern model that he and his family have ever made. To complete the work, the group used thousands of meters of paper. This lantern cluster is made from iron, waterproof decal paper, and mica.
"In the early stages, when making the fish and dragon, it took up to 3,000 meters of paper. The paper created the ripples and fins of the dragon, while the outer scales were made of mica, while the inside was still paper," Hai Anh shared.
Sharing about the biggest difficulty, Hai Anh said it was the process of transporting the giant model from Tuyen Quang to Hanoi: "The transport was very difficult. We had to use two container trucks, and it took one night to bring the model to Hanoi."
The first International Lantern Festival in Vietnam
With the theme "Light of the Orient", the 2025 Ocean International Lantern Festival brings together many unique lantern models from international artisans.
Ms. Dang Thi Thu Huong said she was especially impressed with the work of the Korean team, making an impression when making lanterns from vaccine bottles, this is a completely new material that she has never used before.
Talking about her most favorite work, Ms. Huong expressed her admiration for the work "Sacred Soul of Vietnam" by the Hoi An Craft team.
"The group of authors is young but they are very talented. The work has a very beautiful layout, leaning towards installation art," Ms. Huong expressed.
Evaluating the significance of this year's competition, Ms. Huong shared: "The lantern festival is an opportunity for young children to experience things that cannot be found in the city. For older children who are passionate about lanterns, this is an opportunity to express themselves."
In addition to the entries, the organizers also brought to the exhibition lantern models from China's Yuyuan Festival. The Chinese lantern making art is recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The Festival is not only a playground for talented artisans but also a place to honor cultural heritage and connect the community. With bright lights and inspiring stories, the festival is definitely a destination not to be missed this spring.
