2025 | Professional

MUSE Design Awards Platinum Winner

Mystical Serpent: Light Art Installation

Entrant Company

PHAIdesign弗爱设计

Category

Architectural Design - Public Art & Public Art Installation

Client's Name

The Inlet

Country / Region

China

2025 is the Year of the Snake in traditional Chinese zodiac culture. On the facade of a century-old building in Shanghai, China, we have created a lighting art installation with the theme of snake-"Mystical Serpent", blending serpent legends from ancient China and Rome. The winding 3D inflatable snake body intertwines with the building's windows and the pseudo-3D mural. It renovates the original appearance of the building's facade, connecting the ground and the walls, and giving this century-old building a new visual experience.The inspiration of "Mystical Serpent" comes from the legend of Zhulong, a serpent deity from ancient Chinese lore who governs day-night cycles and symbolizes eternal life. Additionally, it incorporates the story of the ancient Roman "domestic snake" the guardian of family. The fusion embodies renewal, protection and the unbroken thread of life across civilizations. Also this integration achieves a convergence of Eastern and Western cultures, enriches the cultural connotation of the work, and conveys the profound meaning of protection and the continuation of life. Using lightweight recyclable material, the main body of the "Mystical Serpent" is an inflatable device. The material properties ensure that installation can be stably displayed under various weather conditions. The pseudo-3D effect is achieved by covering the building walls with printed fabric and pasting glass stickers on the building's glass. With carefully designed colors and patterns, and through ingenious visual treatment, a strong three-dimensional sense is created as a whole. The bold patterns of the serpent's body are crafted from recycled materials, interlaced with traditional Chinese auspicious motifs and ancient Roman motifs (such as snake scales, peony designs), symbolizing the dragon-snake transition of the Chinese new year.

Credits

Creative Director/PHAIdesign弗爱设计
Weijie Yang
Designer/PHAIdesign弗爱设计
Jiewen Luo
Designer/PHAIdesign弗爱设计
Linhui Miao
Designer/PHAIdesign弗爱设计
Yanlong Li
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