A dancer in traditional red garb lifted her billowing sleeves to the sky, welcoming in the Chinese New Year like a new bloom fanning its fresh petals.

The Friday night performance from St. Louis-based Wei Dance Arts accompanied a banquet at the University of Missouri–St. Louis in celebration of the new year on Feb. 16. The customary 15-day festival begins with the lunar new year.

Hosted by the UMSL Chinese Students and Scholars Association, the event ushered in the year of the Dog, one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals from which each year receives its name.

Delicious scents of Chinese food, including traditional dumplings, filled the halls of the J.C. Penney Building on North Campus as the local Chinese and campus community marked the culture’s biggest holiday.

This photograph was taken by UMSL photographer August Jennewein and is the latest to be featured in Eye on UMSL.