#week 123

Hello everyone! We are so excited to announce this week’s creator: @mattmaesonnatural! Sit back and enjoy as we bring you their works, and please remember to reblog & support them!

If you’d like your own creations to be featured next weekend, just tag us at #spncreatorsdaily!

Lonely Heart of a Young Girl (寂寞芳心人像计划) by Baozhu Lei (雷宝珠). 2018

Tired of the overly photoshopped photos on social media that seem to render beauty in a uniform way, Baozhu Lei initiated her project which she later named Lonely Heart of a Young Girl. Through this project, Lei aims at capturing the romantic and poetic traits of ordinary girls who are just like all the other girls one might encounter in their teenage years—no makeup, a little blunt, shy yet fantasizes about love. Almost none of Lei’s subjects belong to the mainstream ideal of beauty; they are torn between the fickleness of their ability to love themselves despite all other factors. 

Spending time with all her models extensively outside of photoshoots, Lei documents their life stories and the quirkiness that brings out their  individuality. Lei believes that it is the details that truly bring out the realness of a girl’s life in mainland China. In Lei’s lexicom, the word “可爱” should not be translated as cute. “You might not be ‘beautiful’, but you are indeed lovable”, says Lei.

Banner was made by the talented @everlarkingjoshifer

Here is week 123, folks. As always, thank you to these amazing authors who provide me with endless amounts of entertainment. You are all amazingly talented!

Readers-please make sure you show these authors some love! If you’d like to check out my previous posts, follow #rachel’s fanfic lists or search the tag on my blog. Happy reading!

My Brother’s Bride - AULOVE aka @mega-aulover

Quicksilver - gamemakers aka @finnicko-loves-anniec

On Borrowed Time - panskiss123

Time of Peace - alliswell aka @alliswell21

The Only Time We've Got - rosefyre aka @rosefyrefyre & fanficallergy

Katniss Everdeen is Not a Stalker - AULOVE aka @mega-aulover

See Right Through My Walls - @hpfanonezillion

How Do You Know? - @notanislander

Thank you @mattmaesonnatural for letting us share your amazing works this week!

If you enjoyed having them on your dash, please don’t forget to check out their blog and give them a follow!

And don’t forget that you can tag #spncreatorsdaily to see your posts reblogged here each weekend.

Chinese Zodiac Art Exhibition. Han Meilin ( 韓美林). 2019.

To welcome the Year of the Pig, the Palace Museum in Beijing is holding the Chinese Zodiac Art Exhibition featuring the works of Han Meilin. On display are his paintings, sculptures, calligraphy, pottery, ironwork, wood carving, and folk handicrafts on the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. On until February 20, the Palace Museum will also hold cultural events and festivals to complement the exhibit.

A new series of postage stamps to commemorate the Lunar New Year were also designed by Han Meilin for China Post. The concept this year is “home” combined with the characteristics of the pig. The first stamp called, Ample Blessings of the Fattened Pig, shows an energetic pig with a dynamic pose. The second stamp, Gathering of Five Blessings, shows a family of pigs to symbolize love for family.

Han Meilin is Chinese artist born on 1936, in Shandong, China. He is most known for creating the Fuwa dolls for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Having lived through difficult times during the Cultural Revolution in China,  Han was also named UNESCO Artist for Peace in 2015.

First Day of the New Year (元日) by Wang Anshi (王安石). Song Dynasty. translated by Kuiwon (歸源).

Wang Anshi, courtesy name, Jiefu (介甫) was a poet, Chinese economist, statesman and chancellor of the Song Dynasty. A controversial but notable political figure, he was known for attempting major socioeconomic reforms which were known as the New Policies. His poems reflect social, economic and political themes and he was ranked number seven of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song (唐宋八大家).

First Day of the New Year commemorates the Lunar New Year, but also echoes Wang’s socioeconomic reforms which promise a new start in life. Created in the Han Dynasty, Tusu wine is a liquor infused with Chinese herbs which was historically believed to ward off plague, epidemic and bad spirits when consumed. Peach wood talismans are images of the door gods placed on both sides of a house’s double gates to prevent ghosts from entering.

Winter Jasmine (迎春花) by Teresa Teng (鄧麗君). 1971.

正月裡來迎春花兒開

In the first month Winter Jasmines are blooming 

迎春花開人人愛

They are loved by everybody 

迎春花呀！處處開呀！幸啊幸福來! 

Winter Jasmines yeah! Blooming everywhere! Lucky to have happiness here!  

幸福來呀, 幸福來呀 大地放光彩

Happiness here, happiness here, the Earth shining bright

Winter Jasmine is a very popular song that is played everywhere during the Lunar New Year. Sung by Taiwanese pop star, Teresa Teng, the song refers to the Winter Jasmine, a flower with blossoms that peak right after winter. It also means “a flower that welcomes spring” in Chinese. It is a song that paints images of colourful flowers, bustling energy and vibrant happiness for the new year.