NEW YORK, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Met, in New York City held its annual Chinese Lunar New Year festival Saturday to celebrate the Year of the Rat, one of the 12 animals of the ancient Chinese zodiac.
The festival featured dozens of engaging programs, including performances, art activities and demonstrations, and artist-led workshops, for visitors of all ages.
Highlights included Sesame Street puppeteers featuring Alan Muraoka along with artist-led workshops and interactive activities like a hand-pulled noodle demonstration.
Artists from the Chinese Center on Long Island Lion Troupe, New York Chinese Cultural Center, and New York Korean Performing Arts Center staged entertaining performances to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year with visitors.
The museum hopes to make visitors from China, which tops its sources of international visitors, feel proud of their history and culture, said Maxwell K. Hearn, Douglas Dillon Chairman of the Department of Asian Art at the Met, in a recent interview with Xinhua.
The festival was presented by the Met's Advisory Committee on Cultural Engagement and Education Department.
Founded in 1870, the Met is the largest art museum in the United States and is among the top three most visited art museums in the world.
