Creative pieces done using light have added a quirky touch to Taikoo Li Sanlitun, a fashion block in the capital

On Aug 15, Taikoo Li Sanlitun, a popular fashion block in central Beijing, greeted passersby with the breeze of art. Four pieces of art using light by domestic and foreign artists were showcased in different parts of the neighborhood.

Sky Eye by Nan Haibo is an interactive device in the shape of an eye. Made of square mirror stainless steel blocks, it reflects the surroundings like a plain canvas during day time, and turns into a huge colorful light box at night.

Imaginary Magic Butterfly by Huang Qicheng is a realistic sculpture of a butterfly standing close to a blooming flower. Here, hollowed-out steel plate has been used to shape the wings, making the sculpture more vivid.

The other two pieces are both inspired by childhood memories and toys.

Bubble Magician, jointly created by local artists Liu Yang and Yang Lu, stands in the south piazza of the block like bubbles flying.

It made its first appearance at Vivid Sydney, a festival of light, music and ideas in Australia. It is introduced as a delicate and whimsical work with timeless, universal appeal, by the festival's official website.

The installation is 8 meters long, 4 meters wide and 3.5 meters high. The main body is composed of around 80 opaque polyethylene bubbles in seven sizes.

Sensing the breath of visitors through a mouthpiece, the bubbles gradually light up in pink hues, and the stainless steel support rods and metal brackets seemingly make the bubbles float in the air.

Data collected from audio sensors-including vibration, volume and frequency-is converted into dynamic visual effects. And algorithms play out in real time, providing the audience with a new viewing experience with each breath.

Speaking about his work, Liu, a 36-year-old who comes from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the first Chinese to win the Excellence Award of the 31st International Association of Lighting Designers Award, says: "When an art piece leaves the white box of a museum or a gallery, it is facing not professional viewers but the crowd. A public artist has to create an interaction between the work and surroundings, based on an understanding of the city and the space where the work is located, and people who might pass by. Blowing bubbles is about people sharing childhood memories, regardless of age, gender and skin tone."

Liu adds that this work had been done with the help of a doctor from the Beijing Institute of Technology and professionals well versed in structural design.

"Today, art is more diverse and involves more specialized knowledge. People, who are called artists, are sometimes supported by a group. I consider it as the new direction of art creation."

As for Yang, 29, from Hebei province, who studied space design at the University of the Arts London, he says: "I am in love with lighting art since then. And I feel very honored to introduce our work overseas and at home."

Breathing Frame from Japanese artist Roy Kishi is a part of an experimental project named Dis :play (bias) started nine years ago. It's dedicated to transmitting expressions such as colors and movement. The images projected onto the frame change in physicality, creating a visual sculpture that is free from the concept of surfaces and fixed ideas.

The color hue of the displayed image changes with breathing on, so viewers become part of the projection device. And they breathe new energy into the device.

Speaking about his work, Kishi says: "I'm getting more experienced from participating in exhibitions and getting feedback from audiences, and the experiences inspire me and help me to improve my works."

The creation of the art piece is based on the principles of polarization. Pinwheels are made of polarization film, and images are only visible looking through pinwheels.

Kishi, who was born in Tokyo, studied system design engineering at Keio University in Japan, and later did a master's degree of interdisciplinary information studies at the University of Tokyo in 2010.

Kishi was involved in research on spreading art expression using technology. And upon graduation, he restarted production in 2014 after a three-year break. Rather than techniques and tools, his experimental projects focus on phenomena.

Surprisingly, Kishi's passion for art creation comes from his dislike of his studies at university.

"When I was studying engineering, which is architecture related, I always tried to think about what the most popular technology was, and that's why I didn't really enjoy the course. I wished to create something that was totally irrelevant to time, history and location, because only timeless art piece can exceed modern technology," he says.

Speaking about his experiences with venues around the world, Kishi, who has earlier taken his works to the Ars Electronica Festival in Austria and exhibitions in Japan, says that Japan was not the best place for a public artist to present creations.

"It's still a bit hard to achieve commercialization there with new media art," says Kishi. "In Japanese culture, the crowd has to be respected. The first consideration must be whether the art piece will hurt feelings."

Also, comparing his hometown to Europe, he says: "In Europe they put artists and the development of art on top."

The festival will run until Sept 15.