decoration_Asia After Dark

My third strategy was one of my personal favorites, which I entitled DEFINITION. That may not be the best name for it but at the time, it seemed most appropriate. Particularly at night, when the Forbidden City axis is lit up, there are these ephemeral pictures, almost like shadow puppets, that illuminate the night. They are the outlines of the most important buildings in Beijing: the Forbidden City with Mao's face, the People's Monument, and Mao's Masoleum. This night time view helps to highlight the importance of both the axis, the buildings on the axis and the meaning of the buildings. They are also easy identifiers for where and what those buildings are: their projection into the darkness is almost a reminder of their presence and their significance.









































I think it would be interesting to see if there are any other types of sites that are also lit up in this context. Maybe hutongs, or busy streets where lights help to signify the space that exists and the culture within it. That scale may be too small, especially in comparison with these GIANT buildings along the main axis in Beijing, but it would be interesting to see if there are areas held within the same regard, where at night, you see a shape of lights and you can easily name what that place is and what happens there. Before when I was looking at lanterns, that was something that I was trying to see existed. The lanterns have played a long role in Chinese history but generally, they are used as decorative lighting devices now. But they do line the streets like emergency airplane lights at night.



I am also hoping for some comparisons in Japan and Korea in terms of the nightlighting of important places and buildings.