Photo by Edward Grattan
In celebration of Winter Solstice, join us next Thursday, Dec 19th as we gather over warm bowls of sweet tangyuan 湯圓 (glutinous rice balls) and our annual MOONSquare silent auction at our studio! Mingle with old & new friends, try your hand at rolling your own tangyuan to eat, admire the incredible MOONSquare artworks from local artists, and sip on some homemade mulled wine.
We’ll also celebrate the closing of our MOONSquare exhibition with a silent auction! Winners of the auction will be able to pick up their pieces at the end of the event. If you can’t join us in-person, we encourage you to still bid on the MOONSquare auction remotely here. The proceeds will be shared between T!C and the artists, so this is an incredible opportunity to support the arts and learn more about our community.
As part of our annual traditions, this will be our last meetup of the year, so come by and wish each other happy holidays as we close out 2024 together!
A bit about Dongzhi 冬至 or Winter Solstice Festival and cultural practices as seen in our own neighborhood:
Dongzhi 冬至 is a traditional Chinese festival celebrating the winter solstice and the winter coming season of longer days and more light. It’s on Saturday, December 21st this year. The winter time is essential for:
conserving jing (essence) by focusing on resting, sleeping longer, and avoiding overexertion
strengthening qi with gentle exercises like taichi and warming and nourishing foods
nourishing shen through introspection, meditation, and cultivating your inner peace
During the winter solstice, many families within the Chinese diaspora will typically make and eat tangyuan together as the Chinese word for this traditional dessert, tangyuan 湯圓, sounds similar to the word for “reunion”, tuanyuan 团圆. Tangyuan 湯圓 are glutinous rice balls, usually filled with black sesame or peanut paste and typically served in a hot ginger syrupy soup. Here in Manhattan’s Chinatown, a lot of Cantonese families will eat savoury tangyuan, using seasonal produce popular in the wintertime like radishes, dried shrimp, mushrooms, dried Chinese sausage, and cilantro. Some folks even add fishcakes!