Faculty of Design

Material Art & Design

Lei Zhang

Azure Dragon(青龙)

The Azure Dragon represents the East and spring and the wooden element. It is usually described as a massive dragon with blue or green scales. It has strong vitality and creativity, symbolizing a new beginning and the miracle of life. It is one of the earliest divine beasts in Chinese culture and is said to have the magical ability to control wind and rain. Then, it is considered one of the immortals. Azure Dragon was also used as a decoration and emblem for soldiers in the ancient Chinese military, symbolizing courage, strength, and victory, and was regarded as a mascot and guardian god.

“I selected the features of scales and blue-green to design the constellation Azure Dragon. The shoulder part uses the same mechanical device as the Vermilion Bird, highlighting the characteristic that the green dragon can fly. Then I designed the back chain based on the scales' features, the linear three-dimensional structure of the earrings and the front necklace. Finally, use the textile weaving technique to make the braided rope connecting the earrings and the pauldron. In addition, I used a lot of blue-green turquoise half-hole beads, emeralds and Chinese jade. ”