China has two main stock markets: The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE). Most people outside of East Asia are often surprised to learn that these markets use the color red to indicate gains, and green to indicate losses. This surprise stems from the fact that A) this is the opposite of almost every other world market, and B) for most of the world, red is a color associated with danger: stop signs/lights, blood, red light districts in Europe etc. In China though, red is all things positive. It’s the color of luck, fortune, success and prosperity. You can see it all over the place at weddings, parties, holiday events and especially in marketing and advertising campaigns around the country. It’s the obvious choice to indicate gains in their market, even if it runs counter to the rest of the world. There really never was a choice. Everything is learned though. People spend most of their life learning about the nuances of association and subtle meanings. If someone is young enough though they are still in the process, still waiting to find out what all these colors around them mean…whether they are interested or not.
ARTIST | Liu Dao 六岛 | |||
MEDIA | RGB LED display, Chinese papercut (Jian Zhi 剪紙), paper collage,black stained teakwood frame | |||
EDITION | Unique | |||
DATE | Made in island6, Shanghai 2015 | |||
SIZE | 103.5(W)×103.5(H)×5(D) cm |
To see the artwork in motion, visit our website at
http://www.island6.org/InTheRed.html