The Sea Vibes Installation by ToThree Design is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2019 Golden A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Competition Category.
GoldArchitecture· 2019
The Sea Vibes Installation
Client: SUNAC Dalian
Golden A' Design Award Winner in Architecture Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #82475The Design
About The Sea Vibes Installation
This installation was designed using the language of the sea: waves, as it was designed for a residential project along the shore of Dalian Bay, China. The installation is a huge cylinder formed by double-layer copper plates, consisting of 6000 plates hung in the frame according to specific permutation. When walk around the cylinder, this installation looks like waves running one after another. When the plates move in the sea wind, flashing light and colors are reflected, symbolizing spindrift. This design reprodued the vibes of the sea waves with a fixed installation.
The Recognition
About the Golden A' Design Award
The Sea Vibes Installation is a Golden A' Design Award winner, an immensely prestigious recognition granted to first-rate, marvelous, and outstanding designs. Golden winners are exceedingly innovative, visionary, and glamorously dazzling creations that reflect the prodigy, wisdom, and prowess of their designers. The Sea Vibes Installation is expected to be a highly praised, trendsetting, and monumental invention that delivers unprecedented value. This Golden A' Design Award-winning design is a spectacular, respected project that highly benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. The Sea Vibes Installation creates intense feelings of desire, evokes passion, encourages creativity, and fascinates us.
Where to Get It
Visual Identity and Environmental Design Services
We create compelling visual systems that transform architectural environments. From public installations to wayfinding design, our award-winning studio brings spaces to life through strategic design thinking and aesthetic excellence.
Request QuoteInterviews
Grand Interview
Your innovative approach to capturing the dynamic essence of ocean waves in The Sea Vibes Installation has earned prestigious recognition with the Gold A' Design Award - could you share the journey that led to conceptualizing this remarkable 8-meter cylindrical structure?
When conceptualizing the art installation, we aimed to capture the natural essence of ocean waves through dynamic and interactive elements. The initial inspiration came from the rise and fall of the sea waves and their rhythmic patterns. We designed a large-scale, geometrically striking cylindrical structure, with copper sheets suspended to create the visual effect of rolling waves. Through the interaction of the copper sheets with the wind, the installation can exhibit changing light, shadow, and motion under different conditions, simulating the flow of the waves. The circular design of the structure emphasizes the endless extension of the ocean, ultimately resulting in an installation that is both artistically expressive and interactive, perfectly reflecting the dynamic nature of the sea.
The Sea Vibes Installation features an intricate arrangement of 6,000 copper plates - what inspired your team to choose this specific material and arrangement to recreate the mesmerizing movement of waves?
The team chose 6,000 copper plates and a carefully arranged layout, inspired by the dynamic characteristics of ocean waves. Copper, as a material, has a unique luster and texture that creates rich reflective effects under light, echoing the rise and fall of waves. The arrangement, with varying densities of geometric blocks, simulates the rhythm and layers of surging waves, giving the installation a sense of the power and flow of the ocean. As the copper plates shift with changes in light and perspective, they create a complex interplay of light and shadow, enhancing the expression of natural fluctuation and providing visitors with a vivid oceanic experience.
How did the coastal location of Dalian Bay influence your design decisions for The Sea Vibes Installation, particularly in terms of incorporating natural elements like wind and light into the interactive experience?
The coastal location of Dalian Bay profoundly influenced the design of the installation, particularly in its integration of natural elements such as wind and light. The sea breeze and changes in light became central to the interactive experience. In the design, the vibrating copper plates respond to the wind, simulating the rise and fall of waves, giving the space a dynamic quality. Under natural light, the copper plates reflect and refract light, creating a light and shadow effect similar to that of the sea surface. At night, the lighting adds a soft, atmospheric ambiance. The overall design allows visitors to experience the essence of the ocean, constantly evolving with the changes in natural elements, enhancing the sense of immersion and interactivity in the space.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- This installation was designed using the language of the sea: waves, as it was for a residential project built along the shore of Dalian Bay, China. The installation is a huge cylinder formed by double-layer copper plates. It consists of 6000 plates which were hung in the frame according to specific permutation. When you walk around the cylinder, it looks like waves running one after another. When the plates dance in the sea wind, flashing light and colors are reflected, just like spindrift.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- 8 meters in diameter
- Tags
- SUNAC, Sea vibes, cylinder
- Production Technology
- Double cooper plates, cylinder frame
- Design Challenge
- How to give the fixed installation a movement that resembles the endless waves of the sea was the biggest challenge. In the end the cylinder form with hanging cooper plates was the best sollution.
- Research
- As the residential project is built along the shore of Dalian Bay of China, the first thing capture our eyes is the specific feature of the project: the SEA. This inspires us to design an installation at the entrance using the language of the sea:waves, in order to echo the sea. As a matter as fact we further applied this language to the whole space of the demonstrate center, including: the logo, lamps and signage, making the space visually a whole.
- Inspiration
- As the residential project is built along the shore of Dalian Bay of China, the first thing capture our eyes is the specific feature of the project: the SEA. This inspires us to design an installation at the entrance using the language of waves in order to echo the sea. As a matter as fact we further applied this language to the whole space of the demonstrate center, including: the logo, lamps and signage, making the space visually a whole.
- Project Duration
- 4 months, located in Dalian
- Operation Flow
- The cylinder formed by cooper plates creates a dynamic movement of the waves of the sea.
- Team Members
- He Yang
Zhang Rui
Liu Wenbo
Zhang Peinan
Gao Jinxiao
Zhang Linna
Jiang Xuhui - Image Credits
- Photographer: He Yang, Zhang Peinan
Sponsored
Explore Beyond Designers.org
Discover products, services and opportunities from our advertising partners.
More to Explore
Related Designs
Explore more award-winning designs from the same category, selected by merit.
