Quartier des Spectacles is Montreal's major cultural district. This year, there is a new project located at the entrance to Chinatown. The 2022 Chinatown Asian Market offers food kiosks run by neighbourhood merchants as well as a cultural program with concerts, performances, workshops, and talks. As their graphic designer, I helped create their visual identity, logo, colours, scenography, signages, promotional posters, menus, moon-gates, and lanterns. This initiative has a major impact for Montreal's Asian community, with the hopes of revitalizing the sector while showcasing local identity and Asian culture in Montreal.
The theme for the graphics is hyper-mythical pop. The audience is invited to enter into a celestial mythical world, and features motifs of the sun/moon, clouds, cranes, butterflies, dragons, mountains, and magnolia flowers.
The guardians on the moon-arches are the Four Guardian Kings 四大金剛 , who are venerated as temple guardians and protectors of the world. These include the northern king 多聞天王 , the ruler of the rain and one who hears everything. The southern king 增長天王, the ruler of wind and harvest. The eastern king 持國天王, god of music and harmony. And the western king 廣目天王, the one who sees all. They are reimagined into non-binary goddesses and watch over you as you enter the space. Other graphic elements throughout the space such as the lanterns and signages follow this celestial theme.
