“The Moon and The Lunar Year,” an exhibit by Alice Fong, is on display in Sacramento State?s Multi-Cultural Center.

Beneath the European Community banner and the Women of the World banner is a display of Chinese birth year animals. Standing on a platform, behind the glass of the cut-and-paste display, are neon colors of 12 animals that represent the 12-year Eastern calendar cycle.

“I like the vitality of her colors,” said Francisco Martinez, a 37 year-old history graduate student. Martinez said that the circular symbolism of life is very noticeable and makes him want to explore the meaning of her art further.

After passing the display of the gathered collogues beneath the glass, are individual paintings of each of the twelve animals, portraying all of the birth year animals used by Chinese and other Asian groups.

Fong uses mainly bright yellow, black, purple, pink and blue to illustrate the human personality traits of a person born in a particular animal year.

For example, those born in 1960, 1972, 1984 or 1996 have the traits of a rat, according to the Eastern calendar.

Those who fall in the rat category can look forward to a plentiful year of opportunities and good prospects. Those with a rat’s personality are easy to get along with, hardworking and thrifty, generous to those he/she is fond of, but tries to do too much too soon.

If some of you are wondering what your animal and traits are, the colorful display of the Eastern system will run through Oct. 30 in the Multi-Cultural Center, next to the library, Monday thorough Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.