Artistic Action: A Fake Firefly Park Emerges in Shenzhen

 

Author: Dong Qi

 

Editor’s Note:

Recently, the “Shenzhen Urban Lighting Special Plan (2021-2035)” was officially released and implemented. This plan includes the construction of the Dapeng Starry Sky Park, aiming to create Shenzhen’s first dark sky protection demonstration area. The project’s inspiration stems from the principle of “not disturbing migratory birds”—a seemingly simple goal that is extraordinarily complex to execute. Similarly, the habitat conditions of fireflies, which serve as another ecological barometer, are also drawing significant attention in Shenzhen. There is a dedicated group of people engaged in remarkable efforts to protect these delicate creatures. 

 

1.Firefly Groom of Shenzhen

 

On the night of November 20th, a unique collective wedding was held on the vast grassy fields of Dasha River in Shenzhen, featuring nine brides and fireflies.

 

 

Yes, you read that right—the grooms were fireflies, those enchanting insects that are so far removed from contemporary urban memory. Among the nine brides, there were women, men, and transgender individuals. Much like any traditional wedding, this ceremony included brides dressed in wedding gowns, an officiant, heartfelt speeches from the brides, congratulations from participants, cheers and flowers, wedding certificates, and special whispered messages of love shared with their firefly partners.

 

Every detail of the event affirmed that this was, indeed, a real wedding.

 

Before diving into their love stories, let’s talk about the grooms—the fireflies: There are over 2,000 species of fireflies worldwide, each using unique light codes to convey intimate messages. Male fireflies fly around, flashing love signals to females. Some female fireflies, which are either unable to fly or are clumsy fliers, quietly select their preferred male by responding with a bright flash if they find one they like. Of course, most fireflies do not glow all night as it consumes a lot of energy.

 

In 2020, a study published in the journal *Bioscience* by 49 firefly experts from around the world revealed that many of the known 2,000+ species of fireflies are facing extinction. Researchers from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have identified three major threats to fireflies: habitat loss, widespread use of pesticides, and light pollution.

 

The tragic fate of the grooms seems to hint at a wedding that arises from death. In the dark night after the lights are turned off in Shenzhen’s Dasha River Park, this place, temporarily losing its function as a city park, occasionally becomes a haven for fireflies—flying in the air, resting on grass blades, or perched on the ground. Their secluded and elusive nature means that most residents of Shenzhen never have the chance to encounter these magical creatures. In such urban parks, where human influence is obvious, there is a constant threat from pesticides used on ornamental plants and unfriendly lighting that fireflies must contend with.

 

Research indicates that female fireflies are attracted to the brightness and duration of male firefly flashes. Stronger males can produce brighter flashes and offer larger “nuptial gifts”—protein-rich packages essential for female fireflies to lay eggs—making them more desirable mates. Most fireflies emit intermittent flashes, with their flashing rate akin to the human heartbeat, ranging from 60 to 80 beats per minute. When tens of thousands of fireflies gather, it feels like the entire landscape pulses with the rhythm of their lights, emitting gentle hues of green, yellow, and orange, varying by species.

Marriage symbolizes the creation of a family, and marrying fireflies signifies establishing their first true home in Shenzhen. Since the late 1970s, Shenzhen has rapidly developed and expanded, leading to siltation and pollution of its rivers, with water quality deteriorating significantly. Four years ago, statistics revealed that among Shenzhen’s 310 rivers, 159 were classified as black and odorous bodies of water—the highest number among the 36 major cities in China. The quality of major rivers such as the Maozhou River, Shenzhen River, and Dasha River was all rated as inferior to Class V. Additionally, there were 1,467 small and micro black-odorous water bodies, including rivers, lakes, culverts, ditches, channels, and ponds.

 

 

Since 2016, Shenzhen has invested a total of 120 billion RMB to comprehensively address the severe pollution of major rivers such as the Maozhou River, Shenzhen River, and Dasha River, using these efforts as leverage to enhance the surrounding environment. By the end of October 2019, Shenzhen had successfully rehabilitated 159 black-odorous water bodies, ensuring they no longer exhibited these characteristics, with 101 achieving the national surface water Class V standard. By the end of 2019, all 1,467 small and micro black-odorous water bodies in the city had been fully treated, leading to a fundamental improvement in water quality.

 

Currently, Shenzhen is the first city in China to completely eliminate black and odorous water bodies across its entire urban area, making it one of the five cities in the country with the most significant improvements in water quality for major river basins. Volunteers recall that during late-night visits to the Dasha River Ecological Corridor, they could barely hear the sounds of crickets or other insects. The silence of the Dasha River Ecological Corridor is harsh—it incorporates elements like lawns, trees, and flowers that can be part of the landscape, but other insects and plants are entirely excluded from this pseudo-ecosystem.

 

02. From Restoration Efforts to Community Building

 

Fireflies are more than just enchanting insects; their presence is a vital ecological indicator. Restoring firefly habitats is synonymous with making broader environmental improvements.

 

In the journey of restoration, several crucial steps are involved: conducting foundational research, enhancing habitat conditions, breeding fireflies in controlled environments, and eventually releasing them back into the wild. Each stage is indispensable. To bring fireflies back to Shenzhen’s rivers, addressing the issue of “light pollution” along the waterways is also necessary. Fireflies rely on their flashes to communicate, and standard lighting can interfere with their ability to see each other, disrupting their mating process.

 

 

Creating a firefly-friendly environment involves several strategies. Planting dense clusters of trees around habitats to block out light pollution is essential. Furthermore, developing special streetlights that emit red-yellow light at 590 nanometers, a spectrum less disruptive to fireflies, is a key innovation. In addition to these measures, organizing a “Firefly Lights-Out Festival” is proposed, where communities turn off lights to support firefly activity and raise awareness about light pollution’s impact on these delicate creatures.

 

In the lead-up to the Firefly Wedding, the organizers created a mock Firefly Park in Shenzhen. They launched related accounts on Weibo and Douban, and put up posters in various places advertising the fake Firefly Park, inviting people to visit. One of the co-organizers and brides, Pingxi, led the tours through the mock park, holding an old-fashioned flashlight. She guided visitors in learning about the plants along the way.

 

To Pingxi, the mock Firefly Park was like the emperor’s new clothes—an illusion that exposed the fragile existence of fireflies in urban parks. By drawing people into this mock park, they aimed to bring attention to the precarious situation of fireflies in the city, engage a diverse group of people, and spark discussions and actions that could lead to the creation of a real Firefly Park.

 

Fake Firefly Park

The Firefly Park has a unique name and is part of a project co-initiated by Duan Peng’s “Zhaixing Academy.” As an architect, Duan Peng is particularly sensitive to the spatial politics of the city and has long advocated for Shenzhen’s disadvantaged residents, especially tenants in urban villages. He believes that human values and rights should always take precedence over concrete and steel structures. Drawing from his extensive experience with urban villages, he founded Zhaixing Academy to provide educational opportunities for children in Shenzhen who, due to issues with school placement or inability to adapt to mainstream education, cannot attend high school.

 

 

Zhaixing Academy’s educational model includes courses in architecture, design, and general knowledge, and also features project-based classes led by invited artists, scholars, and architects. For this project, Duan Peng invited an artist deeply involved in environmental issues, who has previously collaborated with Pingxi, an advocate dedicated to the restoration, protection, and appreciation of firefly habitats. Together, they planned the Firefly Park and the Firefly Wedding project. Prior to her work on firefly restoration, Pingxi was actively engaged in various ecological protection initiatives and actions.

 

 

 

Pingxi’s first encounter with fireflies happened during her childhood when she lived with her grandparents while her parents worked in another city. Near her home, Pingxi saw fireflies for the first time. She ran to her grandfather to ask what they were, and he told her they were “stars on the ground.”

 

Many students at Zhaixing Academy share similar experiences to Pingxi’s, having been left behind as children while their parents worked elsewhere. Often, like the fireflies in Shenzhen, these children remain unseen. Due to various reasons, they are unable to enter the standardized education system and are prematurely labeled as unsuccessful, gradually slipping to the margins of mainstream society. However, through the “Zhaixing Firefly Habitat Park” and the “Firefly Wedding,” Zhaixing Academy students transitioned from passive recipients to active planners and executors. For instance, the marriage certificates given to the brides at the wedding were designed using Photoshop by Zhaixing Academy students themselves.

 

During the speech segment of the wedding ceremony, a boy from Zhaixing Academy shared his feelings about creating the marriage certificate for one of the transgender brides. On the certificate, the gender field was filled in with Martian script (火星文), a creative and unconventional way to represent her gender. The boy remarked, “This script is reminiscent of the characters used by the ‘Shamate’ subculture; it feels like we’ve created a new gender. When I see this gender symbol, I think of the Martian script…”

 

As he spoke, he would occasionally pause abruptly, his words disjointed, and he took deep breaths, as if trying to mask his nervousness and an inexplicable excitement. This is not meant to delve deeply into gender perspectives but rather to highlight how, when an event is designed to be open-source or to foster a strong sense of participation, it inevitably gives rise to many ambiguous, meaningless, and non-judgmental expressions. These ways of speaking, which are typically outside the realm of serious social discourse, become a channel through which the overflow of discourse finds its way, especially in a practice that, at first glance, seems puzzling and enigmatic.

 

Issuing Marriage Certificate to the Newlyweds

 

03 “The ‘People’ Marrying Fireflies”

 

At the wedding ceremony, each bride expressed her feelings about fireflies and unexpected moments of brilliance.

First up was a male bride who said, “Wearing a wedding dress brings a sense of ceremony, but I feel anxious and shy, unable to look at myself. Yet, experiencing a wonderful night with fireflies feels worthwhile. Also, being in the art industry, he experienced another scene outside of it, and finally, the wedding dress was too tight.”

 

Also, a bride shared that it was her first time wearing a wedding dress, her first time participating in a wedding as a bride in Shenzhen, and her first encounter with fireflies. She believes that excessive openness has driven fireflies away and hopes that this event will reflect an attitude. Another person, upon hearing the news, attended the wedding without hesitation; fireflies were a childhood fantasy for her, and she remembered feeling the environment around her was wonderful. This event felt like a stranger’s party composed of fireflies. Pingxi, one of the initiators and also a bride, recited a poem dedicated to the firefly groom:

流萤，我的新郎

终于要嫁给你

心中的希望

有生之年

能看到你温暖的光芒

虽然离你忽远忽近

虽然你时有时无

但我依然想靠近你

守护你

不让这光芒

在世间熄灭

——萍曦

Ping was speaking

 

One of the brides began solemnly at the outset: “Thank you all for attending my wedding. I’ve worn bridesmaid dresses before, but today is my first time in a bridal gown…” Initially, the author perceived the wedding as mere performance. However, the earnest words of the brides seemed to reveal a profound authenticity, a connection that transcends the formalities of the wedding.

 

This connection also directly returned to discussions about marriage at the wedding. One bride remarked, “I never expected to wear a wedding dress one day. Conventional marriage is too limiting, suited only to a few people and relationships. The firefly project is so romantic; we can create our own marriage. My love with the firefly feels natural, especially since we’ve known each other for many years. As we’ve met less and less, we’ve grown apart as lovers, and the dream has faded away, but now the dream returns.”

 

The bride delicately ‘reads poetry’

 

One bride was particularly outspoken: “I’m attending this wedding to satisfy my family, especially my mom who’s always nagging me about getting married. Rather than marrying a man, I’d rather marry a firefly.” She also humorously questioned the significance of the event: “If human rights aren’t fully protected, why protect bugs? Are humans really more noble than fireflies? Do firefly populations engage in wars? Are urban fireflies superior to rural ones? Humans can’t compare to fireflies in contributions, so I want to marry a firefly and love it for a lifetime.”

 

Among the brides attending the wedding are those who work in Shenzhen as outsiders and those who have lived in Shenzhen since childhood. One reminisced: “I grew up in Shenzhen, and in the 90s, I saw fireflies in the city parks, not just on the outskirts. Later, I noticed fewer opportunities to see fireflies in the urban areas, even forgetting that Shenzhen had fireflies. I hope the scenes I saw as a child can be reproduced in my later life and accompany us all.” She also shared her reasons for attending the wedding: “Wearing a white wedding dress to marry a firefly is a story, but this story tells me that marriage should be a right enjoyed by more people. I am willing to marry a firefly in this way.”

 

Here’s the unified English translation of the provided text:

Each bride wore a floral crown and held a bouquet, seemingly awaiting the firefly groom’s arrival. Yet, the creators of these crowns and bouquets had already found their own sanctuary long ago… These creators were young people who had taken a break from their studies due to depression or other circumstances, and their sanctuary was a place called “青柠” (Qing Ning), an artistic healing project and garden space. Initiated by Wang Feng, this garden is situated in a botanical park where she picks discarded plants, nurtures them at “青柠,” and aims to provide a temporary haven for young individuals excluded by mainstream education or struggling to integrate into society.

 

During the firefly wedding event, some well-recovered “青柠” children enthusiastically participated. In the activities at the firefly park, one child followed the faint light of fireflies. For her, the significance of that moment was indescribable.

 

These indescribable things may take a long time to articulate. One bride shared after the wedding that in Shenzhen, the “money-making capital,” she didn’t feel a strong sense of being a local. However, contributing to the creation of a firefly park made her feel more connected to the city. As a child, she used to shine a flashlight towards the sky without knowing where its light would end up—whether it would ascend to great heights or be seen by eyes beyond Earth.

Before coming to Shenzhen, she experienced early morning community fresh markets in Shanghai, the rapid three-wheeled delivery trucks, and butchers swiftly cutting meat with their knives. Everyone, inside and out, operated at an unusually fast pace. During those days, she underwent the collapse and reconstruction of her own values. She discovered that there were boundaries between people, encounters without familiarity, and on the streets, everyone hurried past with blank expressions. Accompanying her was an inescapable social anxiety, always worried about being judged differently.

 

This stemmed from her experiences of school violence during her education, where she was attacked for her appearance. It deeply upset her and made her reluctant to attend school. At home, she would talk to herself in front of the mirror, treating her reflection as the one attacking her, and responding with a tough demeanor, recalling her grandmother’s Christian advice: “If someone strikes you on the left cheek, turn to him the other also.”

 

This was during her adolescence at the age of eleven, a time when she had no friends and felt profoundly lonely, unable to find anyone to talk to or offer her a ray of light. She now says that she wants to marry a firefly because she has found that ray of light—the light that came from her makeup teacher, who told her she was very beautiful and encouraged her to pursue music and photography. It took her ten years to find this path.

 

Using Morse Code to Court Fireflies

 

After over four years of restoration efforts, the Dasha River in Shenzhen has shown initial signs of revival. However, within the “Star-Picking Firefly Habitat Park” project, it is the reexamination, discussion, and ultimately the restoration of various life forms, including fireflies, that truly constitutes the construction of a complete ecosystem. Initiatives like the Star-Picking Studio, which embraces underprivileged students, and the Qingning Project, which supports depressed children and their families, connect the restoration of natural ecosystems with the restoration of social ecosystems through their initiation and discussion.

 

Previously, it was unimaginable that an ecological initiative could generate so many narratives about “people.” The true linkage of ecological restoration lies in the reconstruction of communities, the naturalization of urban environments, and how people can interact more harmoniously with each other.

Respect for the meaningless, respect for the creation of diverse meanings, and respect for the courage to pursue meaning. Of course, respect for openness and serendipity as well, just like this firefly wedding. Originally conceived by an architect uncle, a beautiful young lady, and a brave artist to raise funds offline for the firefly park restoration, they came up with the idea of hosting a wedding to collect dowries. However, they didn’t collect any money. But (having said a lot already), this project continues to evolve and ferment in an open manner.

 

Finally, celebrating a failed attempt to make money in the money-making capital.

 

Here’s to fireflies around the world finding their mates, and to Shenzhen fireflies settling down soon.

 

Special Thanks: Zhaixing Studio, Liuying Qianqian, Lemon Art Healing Project

Photography: Jia Fengfeng, Lao Ye, A Gui, Jiao Shihao，…