After its Qingming, or Tomb-Sweeping Day collaboration with the new Chinese style fragrance brand Documents, the designer funeral product brand Greatroam (归丛) is launching a new collaboration for another traditional festival. The 3-day event includes art exhibits from domestic and international artists, talks, a music festival, camping and parties.
Between the 29-31 July, Greatroam will be hosting an “International Torch Festival” in Lijiang, Yunan with the local artistic community Land of Wilderness. Inspired by the tradition of the ethnic minorities in Southeast China, the event is described by Greatroam as “maybe our Day of the Dead”. The local minorities such as Yi, Bai, Naxi, Jino, Achang and Bulang peoples all celebrate the “torch festival” around the 24th day of the sixth month in the traditional calendar. It is usually celebrated with parades and torches as well as singing and dancing around a bonfire.
The centrepiece, named “Soul in Wilderness” (安魂, lit. requiem) is a huge installation made of paper resembling a traditional Chinese building, inspired by the Taoist “zhizha” paper art offerings for funerals and festive celebrations. It will be set on fire at the event, along with 35 memorial pillars. The pillars bear 100 messages from commentors on Greatroam’s social posts. who wrote down their memories and messages to deceased loved ones.
Land of Wilderness (荒野之国), sometimes translated as the Wilder Kingdom, is an artistic community built and run by poet and musician Qiao Xiaodao. A cross between a theme park and a hippie commune, Qiao built the houses and installations to be a “secret hideout” for himself and it quickly became a tourist attraction with many going to the middle of nowhere to “check in” (打卡) with the buildings.
With the large-scale experience planned to take place, the events will raise awareness for not just the artistic minded about death and the departed but also how we commemorate them. Leveraging several trends, including domestic travel, outdoor boom and music festivals, the event will be interesting, not only creatively, but also for public interest as it brings a new perception of death to a younger audience.
