This is a guest post by placemaker Paris Kirby.
Featured Image: Neon Lucky Cat on Darby Street, city centre. Created and built by Aan Chu and Angus Muir Design (Photo credit: Bryan Lowe)
Disclaimer: I am a Senior Placemaking and Activation Specialist at Auckland Council; however, the views expressed in this article are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of Auckland Council. My perspectives are shaped by my experiences in the field and my passion for cultural placemaking in Auckland City Centre.
More Than a Celebration
The streets of Auckland City Centre shimmered under the glow of red lanterns. The rhythmic beat of the lion dance pulsed through the air, drawing crowds from all walks of life. This wasn’t just a celebration; it was a living, breathing expression of cultural identity evolving in real-time. But as cultural festivals continue to gain traction in urban centres worldwide, we must ask: Are we using culture as a tool to activate spaces, or should we be shaping spaces to reflect the permanence of culture itself?
Auckland City Centre’s Lunar New Year programme, led by Eric Ngan, offers a compelling case study of how cultural festivals can move beyond temporary spectacle to become catalysts for cultural storytelling and transformational placemaking. It highlights how cultural development can redefine Auckland’s identity, enhance economic vitality, and contribute to a more inclusive urban experience.
Lunar New Year as a Living, Evolving Tradition
For Eric, Lunar New Year is both personal and professional. Growing up as a Chinese New Zealander, he observed how cultural traditions adapted over time. “We never really did a full-scale Lunar New Year dinner in the ways we can do now,” he reflects.
His work in arts and cultural festivals, from the Tu Fa’atasi Polynesian Festival in Wellington, the Waitangi Day Festival of the Elements in Porirua, to Auckland’s Lantern Diwali, and Matariki Festivals, has given him an acute awareness of how cultural traditions evolve within new social and geographical landscapes. For him, Lunar New Year is more than a festive cultural event; it is a lens through which we see how migration, generations, and local context reshape tradition.
Auckland’s demographics have shifted significantly in the past few decades, with the city centre becoming increasingly diverse. Today, over 40% of Auckland’s city centre population identifies as having Asian heritage . This festival is no longer just a ‘seasonal’ event – it is a reflection of Auckland’s multicultural DNA.
Expanding and evolving the Celebration: From ‘Chinese New Year’ to ‘Lunar New Year’
What many know as Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year originates from Chinese culture and serves as the foundation for vibrant celebrations across many Asian cultures. Rooted in centuries-old Chinese traditions, it has evolved and been adapted in diverse ways by communities throughout East and Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, Korea, and Mongolia. While each culture brings its own unique customs and interpretations, the holiday remains deeply connected to its Chinese origins, reflecting a shared heritage of honouring the lunisolar calendar. Further, the diaspora communities have carried the traditions throughout the world for centuries.
It is also acknowledged that it is celebrated by many other Asian cultures with their own adapted and evolved traditions, so there are alignments but also there are differences between the approach and the activities between Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year.
For the Auckland city centre the programme platform can further include associated pan-Asian communities that call Auckland home in the 21st century e.g. pioneer, descended, immigrant, mixed, 1.5 gen, and LGBTQI+
Some in the Chinese community see the name change as diluting tradition, but Eric views it as an evolution – one that provides a platform that invites and includes Aotearoa’s diverse Asian communities to the party. This approach moves Lunar New Year beyond a single-origin celebration to a shared cultural touchpoint that fosters cross-community connections.
The Power of Symbolism: The Lucky Cat as a Cultural Anchor
A standout activation of this year’s Lunar New Year programme was the Lucky Cat installation, which reinterprets traditional iconography through a contemporary Pan-Asian and popular culture lens. Eric commissioned Aan Chu @goodbadenglish an Auckland artist of Chinese Malaysian heritage to craft a design that speaks to both heritage and hybridity. The Lucky Cat has Japanese origins, but the ubiquitous use of Cats on counter tops across pan-Asian restaurants and retailers has moved the icon into popular culture.
- A chocolate fish with a bite missing – because cultural identity, like food, is something we taste, adapt, and make our own.
- Elbow and knee pads symbolising the perseverance of the Asian diaspora in Aotearoa.
- Bare feet with paw pads – a nod to Kiwi culture, where going barefoot is commonplace.
- Symbols from Chinese, Korean, Malaysian, and Japanese cultures, interwoven to showcase Auckland’s multicultural identity.
The composition is illustrated with Pan-Asian elements:
- Finger hearts – South Korea
- Bubble tea – Taiwan
- Red gift envelope with gold ingots – China
- Microphone – referencing Karaoke
- Having two Cats denotes balance and harmony – an allusion to ‘double happiness’ – a common component in Chinese art
- This composition is supported with flowers from other Asian countries that celebrate LNY
- Malaysia – Hibiscus
- Philippines and Indonesia – Jasmine
- Vietnam – Lotus
- Singapore – Orchid
- Brunei – Simpor
This use of symbolism transforms public space into a cultural anchor – not just a temporary installation but a representation of shifting identity and belonging. More importantly, it raises a fundamental question: How can Auckland use cultural storytelling to create a more inclusive city centre, one that is reflective of its true demographics?
Culture Moves Economies: Rethinking the Role of Festivals in City Centres
Cultural festivals are often framed as economic activators, drawing visitors and increasing retail spending. While this is true, it also raises a deeper question: Are we leveraging culture for economic benefit, or are we investing in cultural identity as an economic foundation?
Eric has made a clear distinction between culture as an economic driver and culture as an inherent part of place identity. “Culture moves economies, not the other way around,” he asserts.
Auckland’s city centre has faced significant economic challenges due to shifting work patterns and large-scale construction. Events like Lunar New Year aren’t just celebrations – they serve as vital tools for economic revitalisation.
Lunar New Year generates increased foot traffic for Auckland’s city centre, benefiting restaurants, shops, and businesses. Initiatives like the Bao & Boba promotion integrate cultural storytelling into commerce. But how do we ensure that the economic benefits of cultural festivals translate into sustained support for Asian-owned businesses year-round? Instead of one-off activations, could Auckland develop permanent cultural economic districts that serve as everyday touchpoints for engagement?
Festivalisation of Culture: A Critical Lens
At what point does a festival stop being about culture and start being a commercial transaction? Research on the festivalisation of Pacific cultures warns against events becoming more about economic impact than cultural authenticity.
- Commodification vs. Authenticity: When festivals prioritise broad appeal, do they flatten or simplify cultural traditions?
- Power Dynamics: Who controls the narrative – communities, institutions, or businesses?
- Short-Term Spectacle vs. Long-Term Impact: Do festivals create lasting cultural shifts, or do they disappear after the weekend?
Eric acknowledges these concerns and has actively designed Auckland’s Lunar New Year programme to challenge them. Instead of simply replicating traditional celebrations, his approach integrates youth-led creative expression, diverse Pan-Asian representation, and deep community engagement.
Representation in placemaking is a delicate balance. On one hand, there is a need for authentic cultural expression, ensuring that communities feel ownership over how their identities are portrayed. On the other, cities must balance broad public engagement and inclusivity.
Supporting Emerging Cultures: Auckland Council’s Role in Enabling Evolution and Engagement
Auckland’s city centre is a living, breathing cultural hub – one that thrives when diverse communities have the space to express, evolve, and experiment. Auckland Council plays a crucial role in this by providing platforms that allow cultures to emerge and flourish. By investing in creative and cultural communities, offering support and building capacity, unexpected yet positive outcomes can be achieved. You can’t realise potential unless you give it a go and see who comes out of the woodwork!
Experiencing the Lunar New Year events firsthand, I was struck by the richness of intergenerational and multicultural engagement. There were activations designed not just for passive observation but for participation – fostering relationships, play, and deeper cultural exchange. I encountered new cultural groups and emerging creative talents that I may not have discovered otherwise, proving that these events are not just about representation but also about elevation.
By providing a platform, Auckland’s cultural festivals amplify subcultures, attracting diverse audiences and creating space for new art forms to develop. One of the most powerful observations was the strong sense of cultural pride – attendees dressed up, made a real effort, and embraced the occasion as a meaningful moment of identity and celebration. This speaks volumes about how important these platforms are – not just as entertainment, but as expressions of belonging.
The festival also highlighted the concept of ‘glocalisation’ – the intersection of local and global influences. In an age where social media and digital connectivity expose us to international trends, festivals like this bring global cultural fusion into the physical realm. The city centre becomes a stage where traditional and contemporary expressions blend, reflecting our increasingly interconnected world.
This raises a deeper question: What does it mean to truly serve communities rather than just treat them as consumers? Auckland’s approach to cultural placemaking offers an answer – by designing spaces that allow everyday people to be performers and participants, not just spectators. Karaoke booths, dance battles, and open mic sessions transformed the festival from a curated event into a collective experience, proving that placemaking is at its most powerful when it invites people to step forward, take ownership, and create something new.
Rethinking the Future of Cultural Placemaking in Auckland City Centre
Lunar New Year in Auckland is more than a festival – it is a reflection of a city in transition. It demonstrates how cultural evolution, adaptation, and placemaking can reshape urban spaces into vibrant, inclusive, and meaningful environments. But as Auckland’s identity continues to shift, so too must our approach to supporting culture in the city centre.
While events are often designed as temporary activations, placemaking takes a collaborative, multi-stakeholder, whole systems approach – it is about embedding cultural identity into the urban fabric, creating sustained relationships, and designing spaces that enable culture to emerge and thrive over time. Placemaking is not about simply bringing people to a space for a moment – it is about giving communities ownership of that space in the long term. Unlike standalone events, which often operate on a short-term programming cycle, placemaking requires continuous investment, engagement, and co-design with the communities it seeks to serve.
This shift in perspective is crucial. If we want a city centre that is not just visited but truly lived in, loved, and shaped by its people, we must invest in more than just festivals, we must invest in cultural infrastructure, cross-community collaboration, and participatory urbanism. We must ensure that cultural activations do not simply market the city but instead help define its identity.
The question now is: What practical steps can we take to ensure cultural placemaking is recognized and resourced as a key pillar of city-making?
- How do we embed cultural expression into everyday city life, not just during peak festival seasons?
- How do we ensure that culture is not just a tool for economic activation but a foundation for community building?
- How do we shift from an event-driven model to a place-based approach that nurtures creativity, diversity, and long-term cultural investment?
The answers lie in the recommendations outlined above – a roadmap for policymakers, businesses, cultural organizations, and residents alike. If we are serious about making Auckland a globally connected yet locally distinctive city, we must commit to a future where placemaking and cultural expression are integral to our urban planning, not just an afterthought.
So, where do we start? We experiment. We take risks. We open up spaces for creative expression and let culture emerge organically. Because the most powerful cultural shifts don’t happen by rigid design; they happen when a city listens, adapts, and allows its people to shape its story.
References
- Johnson, H. (2015). Asian Festivalscapes: The Festivalization of Asia in the Making of Aotearoa/New Zealand. University of Otago.
- Ngan, E. (2025). Interview on Lunar New Year Festival in Auckland City Centre.
- Auckland Lunar New Year Programme (2025). Lucky Cat Iconography and Cultural Design Strategy.
- The Festivalisation of Pacific Cultures. (2023). Critical Perspectives on Cultural Festivals in Aotearoa.
[NH1]The CC resident population is 18.9% Chinese, 10.8% South East Asian and 10.7% Indian
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Excellent questions – great post, thanks Paris
We do already embed cultural expression into everyday city life, it’s the European culture that was in place when decisions were made about how to construct the city, in broad strokes and in small details. The thing is that we’re so accustomed to it that we’re like fish not noticing water.
The question should be ‘how do we make places in the future without just sprinkling tokens around?’ A common approach is to say ‘we are going all-in on Maori culture here, that’s the key criteria we’re really going to do right in this project.’ But of course that leaves out the dozens/hundreds of other Auckland cultures; yet to try to include everything would descend into a farcical box-ticking exercise that didn’t even attempt authenticity or real engagement.
What we end up with are European-styled spaces that feel slightly hollow because they need the flexibility to be populated with pop-up festivals which can actually be delivered and get positive community feedback. Sure, they’re fleeting and overly-commercial and often only engage as deeply as a crowd taking a few quick phone photos, but they don’t lock in a single approach or culture or view of the world.
It’s easy to see how we got here, but it’s hard to imagine what we do next.
“….the most powerful cultural shifts don’t happen by rigid design; they happen when a city listens, adapts, and allows its people to shape its story.”
Quite. A city is the built incarnation of trilions of human interactions. Successful cities enable and reflect meaniningful human connections. It’s literally what cities were invented to do.
Great post!
Such a better and more inclusive story today about building things from the bottom up after yesterdays post about imposing unaffordable solutions on us from the top down.
Great post. Placemaking is a term I seldom hear in transport professional circles in NZ. We need to separate our urban streets from being the sole domain of traffic engineers, and free them up to operate as unique spaces that enliven and enrich the city and its many cultures. This would require a legal as well as culture shift. Where is China town, Korea Town, the Little Italy of Auckland? Chancery Lane is great, but we could do so much more. Albert Street is a big missed opportunity to do something really cool…instead it’s being reinstated the same as it was before CRL – a four-lane traffic route without safe cycling.
A start would be fixing the backwards right-of-way laws here and making drivers give way (and REALLY give-way) to pedestrians everywhere within city boundaries.