Two recent installations in Paris caught our attention… and in a great way. Neither are in a museum, which is a fun change of pace!
“Dancing Leaves” at the Peninsula Hotel in Paris is gorgeous, intricate and altogether magical. Present-day design and technology along with traditional Bohemian glass-making come together to create a magnificent experience in the Peninsula’s lobby. Lasvit designers Luděk Hroch and Jitka Kamencová Skuhravá in collaboration with Chhada Siembieda & Associates (Shanghai and Hong Kong) designed this glass art installation, which emulates the leaves from the sycamore trees which are commonly seen on Parisian streets. Use your imagination, as this concept is based upon leaves floating effortlessly in the wind and eventually falling into the pond of the main lobby.
Assembling his largest exhibition to date, and in a department store? Yes, that’s exactly what Ai Weiwei recently did. Known for using non-traditional spaces for his amazing exhibitions, Weiwei used the lobby of the luxury store, Le Bon Marche, as his canvas. “Er Xi” (“Child’s Play”) is based on Weiwei’s memories of childhood. When he was 10, Weiwei made his first creation, a bamboo kite. The bamboo was torn from his home’s window shutters and the string was stolen from his mother’s sewing box… no doubt the end product was beautiful! “Shan Hai Jing” are traditional Chinese tales featuring mythological creatures, and these characters provided the inspiration for the kites. Enlisting the help of 12 Chinese kite makers, 100 figures were brought to life in the form of kites which loom above the store’s central gallery.
The intricacy of the leaves can’t be explained, it must be seen up close!
Image courtesy of: Design Insider Live
In the Peninsula’s main lobby, 800 hand-blown glass abstract sycamore leaves float throughout. The leaves differ slightly, some are clear and some are silver on the inside.
Image courtesy of: Design Insider Live
Here are some bamboo works which will come together under Ai Weiwei’s watchful eye to make kites in the form of mythical creatures.
Image courtesy of: ArtNet News
Weiwei’s first retail installation can be called nothing short of amazingly impressive! How lucky for Le Bon Marche that they managed to secure such a talent?
Image courtesy of: Alumind