A series of festive events featuring popular French cartoon characters Gaspard and Lisa are being held at Sinar Mas Plaza in Shanghai to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France.

A series of events featuring Gaspard and Lisa are being held at Sinar Mas Plaza. [Photo/WeChat account: shxfzdy]

The events are part of the 2023-2024 Christmas and Chinese New Year themes of the plaza, which aims to enhance its image as a city landmark and destination for urban exploration. This is also the first time that the cartoon IP has collaborated with a commercial entity on the Chinese mainland, hoping to create its first international cultural event and a hotspot for 2024.

The events will run until March 17 and include a theme park with multiple scenes, combining online celebrity check-in points, interactive installations, exhibitions, pop-up events, and more, bringing joy to visitors.

Meanwhile, other venues in Shanghai are also launching various activities to welcome the Year of the Dragon to showcase the charm of Chinese culture.

Disneytown, a shopping, dining, and entertainment district adjacent to Shanghai Disneyland, is holding a New Year fair running till Feb 24 where visitors can buy New Year gifts, try festive foods, and participate in folk activities such as writing blessings.

JC Plaza, a luxury shopping mall on West Nanjing Road, has decorated its space with flowers and fish, symbolizing abundance and auspiciousness in Chinese culture. The decorations will change at specific time points, blending oriental vitality with inspired life and creating a poetic spring scene on Nanjing Road.

Xintiandi Style I presents a dragon-themed installation. [Photo/WeChat account: shxfzdy]

Xintiandi, a commercial hub, presented a theme installation that combines the dragon elements and Chinese creative handicraft aesthetics to create a warm, energetic, and artistic festive scene. The installation, named "Dragon Weave and Chord", is co-created by Defrag Studio, a creative exhibition brand, and two artists, jointly present a different artistic expression of the traditional Chinese New Year culture. The installation will last until Feb 25.

Xintiandi The Hub, a lifestyle center near the Hongqiao transportation hub, has built a dragon-themed chair and giant lucky draw tube, inviting visitors to sit on the dragon head and draw good fortune for the New Year. During the Spring Festival travel rush, the underground commercial street HUBO will cooperate with the College of Design and Innovation of Tongji University to hold a creative chair exhibition, giving 50 chairs different meanings and providing a warm and meaningful resting space for visitors.

Jiatinghui City Life Square has teamed up with Wang Jianzhong, a famous paper-cutting artist, to dig into the history of Chinese folk art, combining it with the art form of cuju, a traditional Chinese ball game.

CapitaLand Hongkou Plaza has cooperated with artist 19van to create an exclusive dragon palm art installation, which appears in multiple locations in the mall for customers to interact with.

New World City uses its IP character "Jiujiu" as the theme of its New Year decorations. [Photo/WeChat account: shxfzdy]

New World City, a commercial complex in Huangpu district, has used its IP character "Jiujiu" as the theme of its New Year decorations, adding red elements and dragons to create a festive atmosphere, highlighting the vitality and prosperity of the mall.

Yuyuan Road, a historical and cultural block, has launched a New Year project with a dragon theme. In the festive atmosphere of the "Dragon Year" with "Auspicious Dragon" elements, visitors can experience a dragon hunt and feel the infinite charm of Yuyuan Road.

Xiadu Town, which features rural tourism and leisure, is holding a New Year fair until March 1, where visitors can buy New Year goods, enjoy various cuisines, and participate in interactive and recreational activities. The fair aims to create a high-level cultural and technological event that combines tradition and modernity.

Super Brand Mall is decorated with lanterns. [Photo/WeChat account: pdnews]

Super Brand Mall, a large-scale shopping center in Lujiazui, has launched a dragon-themed card-collecting activity, where visitors can complete designated tasks and receive New Year prizes. The activity runs till Feb 25 and aims to promote Chinese culture and offer New Year blessings.

Metro City, a shopping mall in Xuhui district, is hosting a New Year event featuring the Line Friends IP character Joguman, a cute dragon. The event also offers New Year red envelopes and a lantern riddle challenge on the Lantern Festival on Feb 24.

Century Link Mall, a shopping mall in Pudong New Area, has invited Chen Jiali, an illustrator, to create a lantern-themed art exhibition with the support of the Shenzhen Illustration Association. The exhibition displays lanterns with traditional Chinese elements such as dragons and auspicious clouds, and also offers lantern-themed souvenirs.

Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street, a famous commercial street in Shanghai, is holding a New Year fair at its Century Square with the theme of "Dragon Brings Fortune to Nanjing Road". The fair – which will last until Feb 25 – includes brand displays, market activities, and decorations. The fair aims to continuously create a city experience with a new commercial image and interactive content.

Butterful & Creamorous, a bakery chain, has cooperated with Valentino, a luxury fashion brand, to create a flash store activity at its Wujiang Road location. The activity will last until Feb 26.

Longhua Hui presents a series of dragon-themed decorations for the New Year. [Photo/VCG]

Longhua Hui, a cultural and commercial complex, has cooperated with Wonderland, an art platform, and artist Li Dengting, to present the "Wonderful Dragon Dance, Fortune for the New Year" event till Feb 29. The event also includes a New Year goods festival where customers can enjoy discounts and red envelopes.

Source: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce