On June 23, 2019, the Maserati city showroom located in the center of Lujiazui, Shanghai made a stunning debut. The entire exhibition hall focuses on the concept of “bamboo”. A dragon woven by many experienced bamboo weaving craftsmen purely by hand occupies the door and doorpost of the exhibition hall. The bamboo walls, bamboo slips, bamboo cages, and bamboo boxes complement each other perfectly. It combines Chinese aesthetics and modern space art concepts. The plain bamboo is secluded, and the room is full of vitality, creating a leisurely secret in the hustle and bustle of the city; hollow and knotted, inheriting the classics, carved with ingenuity and elegance with exquisite bamboo. Simple and modern, classical and fashionable, traditional and modern, the contradictions and oppositions of art are fused and symbiotic here, just like the innovation and inheritance in the Maserati brand philosophy.
It is worth mentioning that this city exhibition hall was designed and built by Mr. Li Jianming, an artist owner of Maserati. Mr. Li has been immersed in art design for decades, and has high requirements for the aesthetics and styling of cars. Maserati’s Italian aesthetic charm and artistic heritage have conquered him. “As an Italian car brand, Maserati’s extension and inheritance of Italian culture is obvious, but at the same time, it constantly incorporates its own innovative elements, making this brand still alive after more than a hundred years of baptism. It is the charm that attracts me.” For Maserati, Li Jianming has his own interpretation.
The Maserati city showroom is not only an innovative attempt of in-depth cooperation between the brand and car owners, but also an important carrier to continue the Maserati brand concept and culture. How to convey the concept of brand culture through artistic creation and stimulate the sympathy of viewers is an important topic that designers need to think about in the early stage.
Integrating different cultures and concepts in a square inch to create a rich sense of hierarchy is the forte of designer Li Jianming. In his many years of artistic creation, he has repeatedly used his unique insights and understanding of Chinese aesthetics to design stunning works. As a Maserati car owner, he has more say in his understanding of the Trident spirit and brand connotation. This time, he chose “bamboo” with unique oriental charm as the installation carrier, and carried out artistic creation from multiple dimensions such as culture, craftsmanship, and art, creating a Chinese-style aesthetic concept space with both classic and innovative elements, allowing viewers to experience a unique atmosphere in a space. Feel the blend of Chinese and Western cultures, the collision of city and nature in a space with rich layers and diverse intentions.
In the entire exhibition hall, you can see many representative Chinese elements and images such as bamboo cages, bamboo boxes, bamboo slips, dragons, and even the use of bamboo weaving techniques, which are very Chinese. The bamboo dragon entrenched in the foyer incorporates Chinese aesthetic design concepts, embedding this special cultural gene into the blood of Chinese bamboo culture, which is not only a tribute to Chinese traditional culture, but also a brand-new artistic interpretation. The blank design of the faucet symbolizes the historical inheritance and bloodline continuation of Chinese culture, which requires latecomers to inherit, break through and innovate with a more imaginative and creative spirit.
The shape of the book slips interspersed with bamboo slices symbolizes the long-standing Chinese civilization passed on from generation to generation. The slowly unfolded bamboo slips are like a record scroll, outlining every journey and experience that Maserati has traveled.
Wrapped, hollowed out, connected, and dropped, the strips of bamboo are woven into shape by skilled craftsmen, overlapping with soft light and shadow to create a dreamy space, creating a natural interest among the forest and bamboo. Visitors can relax and imagine as they walk through it.
In the presentation of some details, the designer also intentionally added some western and modern architecture and fashion concepts. For example, the bamboo cubes that incorporate the silhouettes of urban buildings add some sense of modern fashion to the overall design, which is no longer a pure restoration of Chinese aesthetics. “The seemingly opposite and contradictory beauty is harmoniously integrated, so that the audience can experience the long-lost mountain and forest elegance in the bustling city, and also experience the elegance of Italian art in a Chinese aesthetic atmosphere.” The designer interprets it this way.
In addition, a corner of the exhibition hall has also specially set up a display area for brand creative cultural derivatives. Peripheral products such as sports hats, leather goods, umbrellas, and suitcases with Maserati’s exclusive imprint are colorfully displayed, interpreting the fashion attitude of the brand in the field of culture and art. , to provide more choices for consumers who love the Maserati brand and culture.
2019 marks the 105th anniversary of the birth of the Maserati brand, and it is also the 15th year that this Italian ultra-luxury car brand has entered China. From the journey of praising China across thousands of miles to the current city exhibition hall, Maserati has been constantly searching and practicing, paying tribute to culture with classics, and conveying the different charms of Chinese and Western art and culture.
“Bamboo shakes the clear shadows to read the poetry, and the quiet environment is far away from the hustle and bustle.” In the scorching summer, it is also a romantic and comfortable experience to be in such an antique exhibition hall and feel the unique charm of Chinese aesthetics and Italian classics!
