Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the hosting organizations of this event.

The Corvallis-Benton County Public Library and the Corvallis Multicultural Literacy Center held a spring Lantern Festival the afternoon of March 1 at the CH2M Hill Alumni Center. 

The spring Lantern Festival follows the 15 day cycle of the Lunar New Year, celebrated by many cultures. 

The community was invited to attend the festival to learn about Chinese culture through various activities, such as watching traditional and modern performances, many of which were performed by OSU student clubs.

Qinghua Chen, the founder and leader of the OSU spring Lantern Festival who served as the emcee for the festival, explained it’s part of the Chinese tradition to celebrate the first 15 days of the Lunar New Year. 

“This way, we wrap up our festive mood and then we get ready for a whole new year ahead,” Chen said.

According to the press release for the event, each year in the Chinese calendar is represented by an animal and one of five elements: wood, earth, fire, metal or water. As the Year of the Fire Horse, 2026 represents creativity, optimism and renewal.

According to Chen, every day has a different theme such as visiting loved ones or honoring those who have passed. She said she started the OSU event three years ago because she wanted to bring the culture and heritage of both the Lunar New Year and the Lantern Festival to the Corvallis community.

Attendees participated in activities such as lantern riddles, where guests had a chance to answer questions about the festival and Chinese culture to win prizes, and paper cutting, where guests followed a demonstration to fold and cut paper to reveal the Chinese character for “spring.”

“(The spring character activity) is also a decorative piece and also a very traditional way to celebrate the spring festival,” Chen said.

The performances at the event included, but were not limited to, a lion dance performed by the OSU Lion Dance club, Chinese yo-yo, choirs which sang songs in both Chinese and English and a piano recital.

During the piano recital, four different pianists performed pieces by Bach. After the Bach pieces, three of them performed “Mo Li Hua,” or “Jasmine Flower,” as a way to promote peace.

Ben and Kisa Gardener, attendees at the event who came with their baby son Ari, said the main highlights of the festival was the performance of “Mo Li Hua.” 

Kisa felt the performance promoted peace which she thought was an important sentiment for society. 

For Ben, highlights included the festive decorations and the calendar guests received for attending.

“Just having so much of the community gathering together is always a good way to get into the spirit,” Kisa said.