Project Information:
Project Type:
Competition Entry (later independently refined)
Designer:
Sheerin Zhou
This project includes two visual identity systems, a poster series, and a line of cultural merchandise for Kulangsu, a cultural heritage site in Xiamen, China. Inspired by the island’s historic architecture and distinctive topographic contours, the visual system combines layered, high-contrast colors with geometric forms to create a contemporary, dynamic, and vibrant visual language.
Across the posters and merchandise, the phrase “Welcome to Kulangsu” is expressed in fourteen different languages once used by residents of the island, evoking Kulangsu’s multicultural past and collective memory.
The key visual elements are derived from Kulangsu’s mountainous coastal landscape, its colonial veranda architecture, window forms, and its cultural identity as the “Island of Pianos.” These elements are translated into a nostalgic and abstract graphic language applied throughout the visual system.
Across the posters and merchandise, the phrase “Welcome to Kulangsu” is expressed in fourteen different languages once used by residents of the island, evoking Kulangsu’s multicultural past and collective memory.
The key visual elements are derived from Kulangsu’s mountainous coastal landscape, its colonial veranda architecture, window forms, and its cultural identity as the “Island of Pianos.” These elements are translated into a nostalgic and abstract graphic language applied throughout the visual system.
Kulangsu has long been a renowned tourism destination. Between 2012 and 2014, I was involved in research and architectural planning that supported Kulangsu’s nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.