Press Release
Si Shengsheng Magnet Gift Set by Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu Is Granted the A' Design Award in Giftware Design
Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu acknowledged for giftware design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 22, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Si Shengsheng Magnet Gift Set by Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu, designed for The China Media Group Spring Festival Gala, has been granted the A' Design Award in the Giftware Design category. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was decided through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the A' Design Award Means
The Iron A' Design Award is awarded to good designs that meet the rigorous professional and industrial standards set by the A' Design Awards. This recognition is reserved for works that demonstrate a solid understanding of design principles and show creativity within their execution. Recipients of the Iron A' Design Award are acknowledged for their practical innovations and contributions to their respective fields, providing solutions that improve quality of life and foster positive change. These designs are a testament to the skill and dedication of their creators, showcasing their ability to address real-world challenges through thoughtful design.
Regarding Si Shengsheng Magnet Gift Set
Si Shengsheng is a magnet gift set created for the Chinese Spring Festival and the Year of the Snake. The set contains four refrigerator stickers, and each sticker carries a distinct blessing, such as happiness, wealth and the joy of good food. In Chinese culture, the snake represents renewal and continuity through its natural cycles of hibernation and shedding. The design merges the snake with the ruyi, a traditional emblem of good fortune, turning a feared creature into a friendly mascot. The stickers can be applied to any magnetic surface and arranged freely.
About Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu
The School of Future Design at Beijing Normal University draws on the university's century-long tradition in arts education and its standing as a key institution under China's Ministry of Education. Rooted in the intersection of art, technology, and education, the school advances design research oriented toward improving everyday life. Its programs integrate humanities, design, and emerging technologies through problem-driven, project-based teaching. The school offers undergraduate and graduate education, developing versatile designers equipped with both scientific literacy and humanistic perspective to address the evolving demands of future societies.
Award Record
With this recognition, Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu is a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Giftware Design Award
The A' Giftware Design Award is an international gift design competition recognizing good gift designs by leading brands, manufacturers and designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to giftware designers, product designers, industrial design studios and giftware brands from all countries. Typical entries include candles, figurines, picture frames, decorative plates, ornaments and souvenirs. The awarded gift designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/giftware
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/174634
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/174634
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!174634
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/370933
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Si Shengsheng Magnet Gift Set
- Function
- Magnet Gift Set
- Category
- Giftware Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Furniture & Home and Packaging & Retail
- Colors
- Brown, Black, Saddle Brown, Dark Red and Maroon
- Images
- 5
- Client
- The China Media Group Spring Festival Gala
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Peng Gao, Mian Wu and Yixuan Wu
- Country
- China
- Recognition
- A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #174634
Credits
- Team
- Peng Gao, Mian Wu, Yixuan Wu, Shuai Gong, Hejia Chen, Zihong Zhao, Yiting Chen and Xu liang
- Image Credits
- #1: Photographer Evan, Variations, 2025 #2: Photographer Evan, Variations, 2025 #3: Photographer Evan, Variations, 2025 #4: Photographer Evan, Variations, 2025
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- The Refrigerator Sticker Gift Set features four charming versions of Si Shengsheng, the mascot of the China Central Television Station's 2025 Spring Festival Gala, celebrating the Year of the Snake. Inspired by the traditional Chinese ruyi, a ceremonial object symbolizing good fortune, the main character has been reimagined as a lively little turquoise snake. This set includes four distinct designs, each representing a joyful blessing: happiness, wealth, and the cheerful spirit of foodie.
- Inspiration
- The core of this design lies in transforming the traditionally unwelcomed image of the snake into a festival mascot and a New Year gift. In Chinese culture, the snake, due to its natural cycles of hibernation and shedding, symbolises renewal and the continuity of life. Drawing inspiration from ritual objects associated with traditional serpent worship, the design merges the form of the snake with that of the ruyi, creating a mascot and gift set.
- Research
- This design draws on desktop research and artefact studies. We explored serpent worship in Chinese tradition and analysed snake-related artefacts and the evolution of the ruyi motif. The Sanxingdui bronze serpent and the Famen Temple ruyi were chosen as key references. Field research at the Palace Museum informed our understanding of ruyi ornamentation and craftsmanship, which were then translated into decorative elements for the snake’s body in the design.
- Challenge
- The snake is often perceived as a fearsome creature, making it a challenge to transform it into a culturally rich and auspicious New Year gift. By merging the snake with the form of the ruyi, we created a theme of "Auspiciousness and Endless Vitality." The head design incorporates elements from the earliest known ruyi artefact, a Tang dynasty gilt ruyi, with its cloud-shaped tip reinterpreted as the head contour and spiral facial ornament. Additional features such as the brows, eyes, and nose were inspired by the bronze snake from the renowned Sanxingdui site.
- Realization and Technology
- CNC,Stamping manufacturing, Epoxy resin coating
- Operation and Interaction
- The Refrigerator Sticker Gift Set is designed primarily as a New Year gift. The recipient opens the package and peels the backing off each sticker. The stickers are then applied to any magnetic surface, such as a refrigerator door, iron door, or a dedicated magnetic display wall. The four designs can be arranged freely in any combination according to personal preference. Compact yet culturally meaningful, the set functions not only as a decorative item but also as a collectible object, offering the recipient a versatile and lasting way to celebrate the festive season.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project began in Zhuhai in September 2024 and was completed in Beijing in January 2025. It was subsequently exhibited and sold in Beijing, Shanghai, and 35 other cities across China, and was also presented as a gift to the United Nations Headquarters in New York and Tokyo University.
- Keywords
- Refrigerator Sticker Gift Set，Chinese Spring Festival，Mascot Snake
