I was recently commissioned to create a series of fretwork-style sculptures to decorate the lamposts around Greenwich Peninsula in celebration of Lunar New Year. The two designs first seen when you exit North Greenwich Station are made up of two cutout shapes. When both are attached on each side of the lamppost they form the face of a dragon. The cutout style of the work is inspired by traditional Chinese paper cut designs and Chinoiserie-style fretwork.

The designs for the Design District and Cutter Lane are inspired by mythological symbols related to dragons. The designs initially appear quite flame-like, in their colour and shape, referencing the imagery of dragons in European folklore and mythology, where they are often depicted as fire-breathing creatures.
In contrast, in East and South East Asian mythology, dragons tend to be more associated with water so the alternate design has a blue/purple toned palette making them appear more wave-like/water-like. The flame-like shape of these designs is also influenced by the shape of dragons’ manes, spikes, tails and wings as they appear in Chinese bestiaries.

As part of the Lunar New Year celebrations, I also ran two polymer clay workshops in Greenwich Peninsula with the ceramic studio Made by Manos.