GENEVA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- On a quiet winter night, a golden dragon quietly appeared in the mountains of Davos, a small town in southeastern Switzerland, as the stars shone brightly. Against the backdrop of the snow on the top of the mountain, the golden dragon comes to life. This is the latest projection by Swiss light artist and filmmaker Gerry Hofstedtle.
Hofstedtle and his team spent nearly 11 months preparing for the giant light show, called "The Dragon of Davos", and finally got their wish in the early hours of February 2. Hofstettel hopes to use this method to welcome the arrival of the Chinese New Year of the Dragon.
This is a giant light show called "The Dragon of Davos" filmed in the early hours of February 2 in Davos, Switzerland. Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by the interviewee, photo by Mike Kessler) Hofstedtle recently said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency reporters in Zurich, Switzerland, where his studio is located, that the projection of a dragon in the clouds and on the top of the mountain needs to consider various influencing factors such as weather, wind speed, moon phase, temperature, and starlight. He and his team worked almost overnight at the summit in temperatures as low as minus a dozen degrees Celsius, "one of the toughest challenges of my 30-year career."
Hofstedtle recalls the moment when the projection was successful, and he is still excited. "That's the powerful picture I want to show people: the dragon is coming. ”
Hofstettel believes that the dragon, one of the 12 Chinese zodiac signs, is a symbol of strength, prosperity, and good luck. "I am delighted to show this symbolism through my light art and to pay tribute to the Swiss-Chinese friendship. He also hopes that his work will promote exchanges and mutual understanding between the people of Sweden and China.
Swiss light artist and filmmaker Gerry Hofstedtler works in his studio in Zurich on February 7. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Binjie China and Switzerland established diplomatic relations in 1950, and Switzerland was one of the first Western countries to recognize the new China.
Hofstettel, 62, worked as a banker and aviator before dedicating himself to light art. Talking about the original intention of creating "The Dragon of Davos", he said that he drew inspiration from Chinese culture and hoped to create a dragon-themed projection based on his previous work "Tiger on the Eiger" to celebrate the Year of the Dragon.
On the occasion of the Chinese New Year of the Tiger in February 2022, Hofstedtle created a projection "Tiger on the Eiger Peak" to cheer on the athletes who are fighting hard at the Beijing Winter Olympics and raise public awareness of the protection of endangered animals such as tigers.
At the end of the interview, Hofstettel faced the camera and congratulated everyone in Chinese on "Happy New Year, Happy Year of the Dragon".