OctaPlay: A Kinetic Public Art Installation Powered by Wind

4 hours ago
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Shougang Park in Beijing has a strong industrial heritage, defined by the massive remains of a steel mill. Daxing Jizi Design inserts a light, kinetic, and colorful intervention into this heavy and dark atmosphere: OctaPlay .

Designed for Yong Ding He Ji, a thriving cultural and living space on the banks of the Yongding River, this public art installation takes its name from its octagonal geometry. Its folded surfaces and polygonal frame are reminiscent of paper origami. This sense of lightness and fragility creates a conscious contrast with the harsh and monumental industrial structures surrounding it.

From chimneys to topology

The design team describes the project as a topological interpretation of Shougang Park's iconic chimneys. However, instead of a vertical and massive volume, there is a form divided into semi-transparent and rotating elements. Suspended colored discs move with the wind, overlapping to create a constantly changing composition of light and shadow.

Initially starting with the idea of woven metal sheets stacked on top of each other, the team later turned to folding and interlocking principles in the process. The structure, which uses both heavy and light materials, also evolved over time with color choices. The metal frame, initially conceived in black, was re-evaluated after time spent on site. The team, daily exposed to dark industrial structures, added silver surfaces and soft peach tones in the background to create a brighter effect in the project.

An architecture governed by the wind.

The real actor in OctaPlay is the wind. It acts like an invisible conductor, setting the suspended discs in motion. As sunlight passes through the rotating surfaces, colorful reflections swirl across the floor, making visitors part of a temporary field of light.

Yong Ding He Ji is situated within a complex context where riverbanks, mountain silhouettes, and factory ruins intertwine. The overall development strategy for the area is based on minimal intervention and spatial continuity. Architectural, artistic, and commercial programs rise from the existing ground.

OctaPlay operates within this logic. It transforms the scale and symbolic power of the surrounding chimneys into an abstract form on a human scale. It engages in dialogue with the industrial landscape without destroying it.