Richmondite Winston Sayson is busier than usual, travelling around the city snapping pictures of Lunar New Year decorations to share with the public.
People may have come across Sayson’s previous work featuring Christmas light installations on the Community of Richmond Facebook group. The photos of dazzling Christmas lights have received hundreds of likes on social media.
This time, dozens of photos featuring red lanterns, red pockets and Tsai Shen, the god of wealth and fortune in Chinese culture, have been shared on the same Facebook group again.
“My desire is to bring some good cheer in this difficult time by showcasing the lovely and impressive New Year decorations within our city. I also wanted to laud the warm diversity of Richmond,” said Sayson, a retired crown prosecutor who has been living in Richmond for more than forty years.
To bring delights to more people at this time, Sayson spent the past two days visiting at least ten local sites for his Lunar New Year project, such as Aberdeen Centre, Yaohan Centre, Parker Place Mall, Lansdowne Centre and various restaurants.
Sayson’s New Year photo project mainly focuses on Richmond’s Golden Village, which is famous for its high-concentration of Asian shopping malls. However, he found many of those places which are usually hubs of celebratory events fell silent this year because of the ongoing crisis.
“Everything moved online, including the lion dance. I was particularly saddened to see how deserted Aberdeen Centre was on our Lunar New Year’s Eve,” added Sayson.
“I wish to bring what’s happening outside to people who aren’t able to go out due to the pandemic, so they could feel a little bit of connection to what’s out there.”
