Smart Splash — Glass in Motion
Updated: Jun 3
In this project, glass is not static — it becomes movement.
Smart Splash is a large-scale glass art installation created for Shell’s Shanghai office in Hongqiao Xintiandi. The work translates the image of splashing oil into a suspended composition of glass: droplets, molecular structures, and flowing liquid forms are captured in space, as if a single moment of motion had been frozen in time.
The project was developed by glass artist Liyue Zhu together with Spanish architect Ivan Ballesteros, in collaboration with Gensler, who was responsible for the interior design of Shell’s Shanghai office. According to the original project report, the installation measures approximately 7.6 m × 2.6 m × 0.9 m and uses more than 1,000 steel wires and over 2,000 suspension points to achieve its floating structure.
Key Information
Project: Smart Splash
Location: Shell Office, Shanghai, China
Artist: Liyue Zhu & Ivan Ballesteros
Interior Design: Gensler
Material: Glass
Dimensions: approx. 7.6 m × 2.6 m × 0.9 m
Techniques: Lampworking, kiln-forming, hot bending, suspended installation
Meet the Artists
Liyue Zhu (left) is a glass artist who graduated from the Department of Sculpture at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, and later studied glass art in the Czech Republic. Her practice spans glass art, conceptual art, installation, and public-space projects. She is especially skilled in using glass and light to create artistic designs for public spaces, transforming the material into spatial experiences of colour, atmosphere, and perception.
She has exhibited widely in Europe, Asia, and the United States, and has participated in the International Glass Symposium in Nový Bor, Czech Republic, a long-established international platform for contemporary glass art and craftsmanship. She has also received awards including First Prize at the 2014 Beijing International Light Festival and the Beidou Master Award at the Ordos Cultural and Creative Festival.
Ivan Ballesteros is a Spanish architectural designer and artist. He studied Architecture and Urbanism at ETSA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and later completed a postgraduate Master of Architecture at the Design Research Laboratory, Architectural Association School of Architecture in London. He has received several international architecture awards.
His design practice covers lighting, furniture, art objects, architectural materials, and other fields with a strong experimental character. His work moves between architecture, object design, and contemporary art, combining spatial thinking with material exploration. He currently lives in China, where he founded Wanzhong Design Studio.
From Liquid Energy to Glass Form
The installation is inspired by the image of liquid in motion. Instead of depicting oil directly, the artists translated a splash into glass elements: fine droplets, spherical beads, molecular forms, and larger flowing shapes.
Each element was made through a different glass technique. Small spheres suggest mist-like particles, lampworked components refer to molecular structures, and kiln-formed or hot-bent pieces express the movement of liquid being poured and stretched through space.
The amber-toned glass evokes the quality of refined oil, turning movement, density, and energy into a spatial glass composition.
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A Complex Suspended Structure
Although the work appears fluid and spontaneous, it required precise engineering. More than 1,000 steel wires and over 2,000 hanging points position the glass elements at specific angles, creating the impression of floating, falling, and forward movement.
The elements are not simply arranged in rows. They overlap and form a layered field, where large glass forms create the main movement and smaller components add rhythm, depth, and atmosphere.
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Glass Between Art, Design, and Architecture
Smart Splash brings glass art into an architectural office environment. It is not merely decoration, but part of the spatial identity of the interior.
The work shows how glass can operate beyond the scale of objects, interacting with space, light, structure, and movement. It combines technical precision with a poetic sense of fluidity.
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Material Presence
The strength of the work lies in the contrast between subject and material. Oil is fluid and temporary; glass is solid and enduring. By translating a splash into glass, the project turns a fleeting moment into a permanent spatial experience.
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