Inside the Making of a 12-Metre Giant Aoyu Lantern
At this scale, the challenge was not simply to make a large lantern. The form had to remain expressive at night, divide into practical transport sections and return to its intended shape during installation.
Turning a giant Chinese lantern design into a buildable structure
This 12-metre giant Chinese lantern began as an ambitious New Year centrepiece. Star Factory Lantern handled design development, structural fabrication, internal lighting, surface finishing, factory trial assembly, sectional packing and installation support.
The project was built for a 2026 New Year installation. Its central figure was an Aoyu, expressed here as a mythical fish-like creature with an elaborate head, broad body and projecting fins. Its size made it a natural focal point, but also increased the demands on the hidden structure and delivery plan.
The first task was to protect the character of the figure as the design moved from an image to a full-size structure. From a distance, the head, back and fins needed a clear silhouette. At closer range, the eyes, scales, whiskers and colour transitions needed enough definition to keep the figure from becoming one large illuminated mass.
That balance shaped every later decision. Structural lines had to support the visual form, lighting had to reveal rather than flatten it, and the sections had to be planned around the journey from workshop to site.
The steel frame carried both the shape and the transport plan
For an irregular lantern of this size, the steel frame does far more than hold the fabric. It fixes the main curves, supports projecting details and establishes how the completed figure will separate into modules.
Our fabrication team developed the head and body around identifiable connection points. Space was also kept for wiring, light placement and later access. This allowed the surface team to work toward a stable outline without covering the points needed for assembly or maintenance.
Planning the modules during fabrication reduced the need for improvised cuts after the lantern was finished. It also gave the installation team a clearer sequence for rebuilding the form on site.
Read clearly at a distance
The main profile was established before smaller decoration was added.
Separate without losing the form
Connection points followed the shape while remaining practical for transport.
Leave room for lighting and service
Wiring routes and access points were considered before the surface was closed.
Brightness alone would not give the Aoyu its expression
The head was the natural focal point, so the lighting and surface teams worked around a clear visual hierarchy. The eyes and facial lines needed emphasis, while the surrounding scales, whiskers and decorative forms had to remain visible without competing for attention.
Internal light positions were coordinated with the translucent surface and painted colour. Repeated checks from different distances helped reveal areas that were too flat, too bright or visually disconnected. The goal was a figure that still felt sculptural after dark.
This stage also depended on hand finishing. Flexible whiskers, curved scale lines and colour transitions followed the frame but softened its mechanical geometry, giving the completed lantern a more convincing expression.
Problems were resolved in the workshop before the lantern reached the site
A finished surface was not the end of production. During factory trial assembly, the team checked the fit between modules, lighting continuity, cable connections and the appearance of the seams. Parts that needed extra protection were identified before loading.
The same section logic continued through packing and installation. Large body and head modules travelled separately, with vulnerable surfaces wrapped and connection areas kept accessible. On site, the structure was reassembled and fixed before the lighting system was connected and adjusted after dark.
For a large public display, this sequence matters. A clear trial, packing and installation plan gives the site team fewer decisions to make under deadline pressure and makes it easier to trace a connection if an adjustment is needed.
Watch the Aoyu lantern take shape
The film brings together workshop fabrication, lighting installation, surface detail, packing and the finished illuminated form. Playback begins only when selected.
Project footage supplied by Star Factory Lantern · H.264 MP4 · 43 seconds · no autoplay
Public event context: Municipal coverage of the wider 2026 New Year programme described a 12-metre Aoyu feature. That report provides event background only; the manufacturing account and media on this page come from Star Factory Lantern’s project work. Read the public event coverage.
What should be settled before a large themed lantern enters production?
A reference image is only the starting point. The most useful early information is the available footprint, preferred viewing direction, access route, lifting conditions, power supply, installation window and opening date. These details affect the proportions, section sizes and connection plan long before packing begins.
The Aoyu project is a useful example of that coordination: the visual idea, steel structure, internal lighting, transport modules and site sequence were treated as one connected build rather than separate tasks.
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