Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis by Yu Liang Chen

Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis by Yu Liang Chen is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2020 Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum in Ars Pulchra Competition Category.

AesArs Pulchra· 2020

Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis

by Yu Liang Chen

Client: NewLocal Art Studio

Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum Winner in Ars Pulchra Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #97588

View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis

Corona Ducis Maris est opus artis publicae in Municipio Kouhu, Praefectura Yunlin, Taiwaniae situm. Instructio decem metra longa, tria metra lata et quattuor metra alta est. Compages ex chalybe inoxidabili et mortario cementicio formam efficit, dum tegulae vitreae nitidae, testae fictiles fractae, lapilli et vitrum speculare superficiem operiunt. Subsellia intus umbram et quietem praebent, et glarea alba circa fundamentum pueros ad ludendum invitat. Formae ex culturis indigenis, Han et Iaponicis coniunguntur. Corona reverentiam erga opes marinas fovet.

The Recognition

About the Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum

Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis victor est Praemii A' Design Award Aeneum, honoris multum aestimati formis egregiis, creandi ingenio, sollertia et acumine insignibus dati. Victores Aenei opera perita et mire creandi sunt, quae experientiam, imaginationem et solertiam auctorum suorum confirmant. Exspectatur Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis rem multum aestimatam, admiratam et carissimam, notabiliter professionalem et novam fore. Haec forma Aeneo victa optimas consuetudines artis, scientiae, formandi rationis et technologiae amplectitur et in cura minutiarum excellit. Crown of the Sea General Munus Publicum Artis necessitates egregie explet, cupiditates tangit, sensus capit et curiositatem allicit.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Located in Kouhu Township, Yunlin County, it not only takes on the elements from patterns of various ethnic groups, but is also equipped with practical functions, including benches for resting in the interior of the installation which provide sun-ray-shielding function, and white gravels paved around for children to play with which enhances the chances to interact with people and then to pay attention to issues of environmental protection and the ocean.
Dimensions & Packaging: The installation measures 10 meters long, 3 meters wide, and 4 meters tall. We apply the common construction method of Taiwanese modern temple roof, which comes in dragons and phoenixes, and also take the features of materials into consideration. Besides, artisans who are expert on making the exterior of temples such as legendary figures, statue of deities, auspicious animals are invited to work together.
Tags: Installation art, Gazebo, Multi-cultural groups, Marine Resources, Environmental protection issue
Production Technology: We took stainless steel bar and net as the frame, cement mortar as the molding material. The surfaces were applied with glossy glaze tiles, fragmented ceramics and close-lightly pebbles, and pottery plates as well as pot lids were embedded in as design to increase fun. Then mirror-pane glass formed the exterior, strengthening the perception toward the combination of tradition and modern.
Design Challenge: Trying to combine modern art design and traditional craft, the design team especially invited molding masters and fragmented ceramic artisans constructing temples in southern Taiwan. Because of that, the design team spent a great amount of time communicating construction methods and related details, including design proportion, fragmented ceramic coloring, format, construction procedures, etc., which challenged the past designing and constructing experience of the designers and artisans.
Research: The figure was set in the elements from mythologies. The crown came from Giant Groupers, which is a part of Taiwanese aquaculture. Indigenous, Han, and Japanese signs are introduced. The theme color is shades of red, which is a symbol of luck and happiness in Taiwan; black, white, and golden frame reveals a sense of exquisiteness from Japanese culture; the Mountain Patterns, which belongs to indigenous tribes in Taiwan, taking blue, green, and orange to represent atmosphere, sea, and land.
Inspiration: In order to remind people of the importance of respect while using marine resources, the idea of the Sea General came from the traditional folk religion, the Sea Goddess, Mazu. It symbolizes that to save the environment damaged by human beings, the Sea General sacrifice its own life and leave behind the crown to remind people of the meaning of cherishing the planet, correlating with the issue of marine resources preservation and climate change.
Project Duration: The project finished in November, 2019 in Yunlin County, Taiwan.
Operation Flow: Crown of the Sea General looks like a character coming out from fantasy novels, deepens the visual perception to reach the goal of warning people that our future environment might face the fightback of nature. As for the colors, the design team chose to use prevailing decoration elements from traditional Taiwanese temples and deity statues and particularly commissioned professional Koji Pottery workmen to produce low temperature glaze kilning fragmented ceramic and tiles.
Team Members: Yu-Liang Chen
Image Credits: Cheng-Mao Liu