Young Architects Program International

The 2014 winner of YAP MMCA is the installation Shinseon Play, by Moon Ji Bang, a team comprising Choi Jangwon, Park Cheonkang, and Kwon Kyungmin. As the architects explain, the structure was inspired by an ancient Korean myth: “Shinseons are imaginary Taoist hermits . . . [who] live on top of high mountains or above clouds, transcending the hustle and bustle of the human world of joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.” Cloud-like balloons sway gently in response to preprogrammed changes in air pressure. A trampoline is placed among the balloons so that visitors can jump up through the “clouds” and into the artificial mist pumped into the air above. Walking on a wooden bridge above the balloons, one would experience a magically transformed world and a wonderful escape from the summer heat.