Balhae
The background of the project follows apprentice Junghyae and her mentor, Master Yoo, summoned to Gyeru village to banish spirits from the seas. Their journey unveils Balhae's culture and mystical practices. This character design project pays homage to Balhae's civilization, blending history and fantasy. The artist's fascination with history, culture, and fashion not only imbues this design project with aesthetic appeal and functional storytelling but also adds a sense of historical weight and a touch of poetry to it.
Balhae Character Design by Ziwan Li was identified as an outstanding example of communication design by the A' Design Award. Balhae Character Design was awarded the Iron A' Design Award in Digital Art in 2024. The A' Digital Art Award is an international, juried, academic and meritocratic design prize that recognizes excellent design of digital art, animations, illustrations, 3D models, digital paintings, vector artworks, photomanipulations, fractal designs, pixel art and more.
