Malaysian artist Pamela Tan brings Disney’s ‘Inside Out 2's Joy and Anxiety to life at The Exchange TRX (VIDEO)
KUALA LUMPUR, June 5 — Malaysians can now discover a joyously anxious public art space from Disney’s latest animated film Inside Out 2.
Embrace the Unknown, designed by Malaysian artist Pamela Tan of Poh Sin Studios, is a yellow and orange structure located inside The Exchange TRX.
Resembling a cloud, the space features Tan’s signature tree-like beams sprouting from the centre connected with yellow and orange strings.
Each pillar also contains multiple stress balls, which encourage families and children to play and interact with the piece to instill the film's whimsical atmosphere.
Life-sized figures of Joy and the sequel's new character Anxiety at the play area's entrance.
Tan shared with Malay Mail on the opportunity to work with Disney on the project, the challenges of building it, and how kids have responded to it.
The architectural artist said she ‘could hardly contain her excitement’ after getting the call from Disney Malaysia as Inside Out is one of her favourite Pixar films.
“Disney shared the teaser plot with me, and we discussed centering the installation around the two main characters, Joy and Anxiety, as they represent contrasting forces within all of us.
“By designing an environment that encourages exploration and physical interaction, I aimed to evoke that sense of wonder and joy that is often associated with childhood," she said.
“The goal was to create a space where both children and adults could reconnect with their inner child and experience the pure delight of discovery.”
Visitors are encouraged to touch and feel the public art piece which features interactive strings and stress balls. — Picture courtesy of Poh Sin Studios
The ‘dream project’ began in mid-January and took five months to be built and installed, with Tan working with a passionate team of engineers, metal fabricators and part-timers.
According to her the most challenging part of the build was ‘timeline and buildability’, making sure the structure was safe and sound before it was unveiled on May 24.
“My design team and I worked very closely with the engineering team and metal fabricators to ensure the design integrity, such as the detailing and linework, was maintained and translated well into structural form,” the artist said.
Tan said the space has turned into a ‘kid magnet’, allowing them to run, jump, and look around and touch the details like the strings and stress balls.
She joked that kids have ‘stolen’ many of the stress balls already and will replace them with new ones.
Embrace the Unknown will be open till June 30 and is located at the Urban Node beside UNIQLO.
