Pop Star: A Transcendental View Platform

Li Hao's Award-Winning Installation Challenges Human Perception

Li Hao's inspiration for Pop Star came from questioning the reliability of human vision. With only three types of cones in our eyes, humans perceive a limited range of colors compared to birds, which have four types of cones. Insects, on the other hand, have compound eyes composed of numerous hexagonal ommatidia. This led Li Hao to create an installation that pushes the boundaries of human visual perception.

The installation is based on the geometric shape of the icosahedron. Through a process of spatial deconstruction and form reconstruction, Li Hao created a massive structure that seems to have flown in from another dimension. The installation's size exceeds the human visual reading scale, making it appear like an alien object. This association between the Pop Star and transcendental theory echoes Ralph Waldo Emerson's statement: "The world globes itself in a drop of dew."

Pop Star is constructed using a steel structure and measures 15000mm x15000mm x15000mm. The installation offers a unique interaction for viewers. They can enter the central area and look around the fields, experiencing a quiet, dependent, and maternal feeling. From the outside, however, the installation appears oppressive and power-hungry, creating a dialectical relationship between motion and static. This paradoxical state of perception expresses a pure form of original power, an amplification and extension from instinct.

The installation was designed in December 2019 in Beijing and completed in August 2020 in Shanghai. Pop Star has received significant recognition for its unique design and concept. It was awarded the Golden A' Fine Arts and Art Installation Design Award in 2021, a prestigious accolade granted to marvelous, outstanding, and trendsetting creations that reflect the designer's prodigy and wisdom.

In conclusion, Pop Star is a testament to Li Hao's innovative approach to design. By challenging the limitations of human perception, the installation invites viewers to question their understanding of the world and explore the unknown universe in a transcendental way.