On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year, the center of every town, city and village in China glows with the light from hundreds of paper lanterns. The Shang Yuan festival (or lantern festival) draws families from their homes into the packed streets to bask in the auspicious red light of the new year. Riddles are written and solved and yuan xiao or sticky rice dumplings are eaten to celebrate harmony and happiness in every family.

The family in Mian Situ's Preparing for the Festival, San Francisco, 1904 is a long way from China, but love and a pioneering spirit keep these important traditions alive in the land they now call home. Situ specifically composed this painting for and donated it to the silent auction at the 20th Anniversary Autry Gala this past September, where the winning bid reached $150,000.

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