More than 600,000 people are expected to visit Sydney for Lunar New Year celebrations showcasing local community and "dramatic" artistic flair.
From February 6 to 21, Sydney will come alive at 80 events to ring in the new Year of the Monkey.
One of the main features will be the Lunar Lantern Exhibition, where 12 animal lanterns up to eight metres tall representing each of the zodiac signs will stand at some of Sydney's iconic locations.
The lanterns are the works of leading contemporary Chinese-Australian artists and were up to seven months in the making, according to the curator of Sydney's Chinese New Year Festival, Claudia Chan Shaw.
"The lunar new year is a joyous celebration of tradition, culture and community," Ms Chan Shaw said. "So we asked the designers to think big, and they did."
Ms Chan Shaw said the lanterns will showcase Chinese tradition with a "cheeky" Australian sense of humour, exploring "dramatic new territory".
"It's traditional in the sense that they're lanterns, but not at all traditional in the way they're represented," she said.
"In the lantern festivals in Asia the lanterns typically are animals, but they're not quite as playful as ours – these are really quite cheeky."
The lanterns, will include a two-storey ox made of 748 glowing mahjong tiles stationed at Martin Place, and a collection of 14 two-metre tall rabbits practising Tai Chi in silk waistcoats at Customs House Square.
The new zodiac's lantern, the Monkey, features three giant wise monkeys sitting on a pencil at the Sydney Opera House, a work of the renowned Australian artist Laurens Tan.
Four of the lantern locations will also feature performances from more than 1000 local dancers across five nights, including a dance group bringing to life the Barrel of Monkeys game.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said she was excited to see the transformation of the city for the festival, which are the largest lunar new year celebrations outside Asia.
"It will just be an amazing experience in moving from the different lanterns, and I think people coming with their families will have a very special time," said the Lord Mayor.
The lanterns will be lit on Saturday at 8pm and will run until February 14.
The complete program can be found at sydneychinesenewyear.com.
Chan's boy band JJCC to launch Lunar New Year festivities
What better way to kick off Lunar New Year celebrations in Sydney than with the blessings of kung-fu star Jackie Chan himself?
The Hollywood action hero's K-Pop boy band, JJCC, will launch the city's Chinese New Year Festival with performances at Carriageworks on Friday and Saturday, joined by fellow boy band sensations Boyfriend.
Performing for the first time in Sydney, it is up to Liverpool-born JJCC member, Henry Prince Mak - better known to fans as Prince Mak - to introduce his bandmates to meat pies, he said on Thursday.
But spare a thought for the stars as we enter 15 days of festive feasting, banquets and family parties.
"We eat once a day, run for three hours a day and dance for seven or eight hours a day," said a svelte Eddy Oh of JJCC.
