Have you ever been to the Toronto International Dragon Boat Race Festival (TIDBRF), or heard about this colourful event at Centre Island, Toronto?
Here are two photos of the dragon boat races taken by Mr. Tam Kam Chiu,
Photos taken by Mr. Tam Kam Chiu, GMPSA (Grand Master of the Photographic Society of America). In 2015, Mr Tam Kam Chiu was rated the TOP TWO photographer in the world in the Colour Division, and the TOP TWO photographer in the world in the Monochrome Division by the Photographic Society of America.
The uniforms of the athletes are colourful, each identifying the teams they belong to.
Note also the color of the dragon boats: red and white which takes after the Flag of Canada. The colours on the Canadian flag, which are also Canada’s national colours, have their meanings derived from Canada’s history.
“Red and white became Canada’s official colours as a result of the proclamation of the Canada Coat of Arms by King George V in 1921. However, the history of the official colours dates back to the First Crusade in the 11th century.Bohemond I, a Norman lord, had red crosses cut from cloaks and distributed to 10,000 crusaders. The crusaders wore the crosses on their clothes as a distinguishing mark, since they had no uniform to identify them.In later crusades, each nation was identified by a cross of a different colour. For a long time, France used a red cross on its banners, while England carried a white cross. In the course of history, red and white alternated as the national colours of France and England.”Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/official-symbols-canada.html#a9
So colours acquire cultural meanings with the stories behind them.
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