Light installation 1.8 by Janet Echelman. Photo: Courtesy of Solana

A giant colorful net sculpture more than 30 meters long and 14 meters in wide is currently hanging above one of Beijing's busiest bazaars, the Solana shopping mall. Catching the eye of passersby, the net is just one of the many attractive light installations that make up Solana's annual light festival, a collaboration between the shopping mall and the Yang Art Museum. 

The floating sculpture, titled 1.8, comes from the mind of US artist Janet Echelman. 

Inspired by the length of time in microseconds that the Earth's day was shortened as a result of Japan's devastating 2011 earthquake and the resulting tsunami, the sculpture is modeled after the data sets of the tsunami's wave height rippling across the Pacific Ocean.  

One of the major light festivals in China, the 10th Solana Light Festival takes the theme Ten - Light this year.     

Besides 1.8, visitors will also be able to see various light installations from the US and The Netherlands including The Flower From The Universe, The Uniting Lightstar and Reason to Fly. 

"We are working with the Amsterdam Light Festival to bring in more international artists," said Lu Chao, Solana's vice general manager. 

The Yang Art Museum began working with Solana on the annual festival since last year. 

"Our museum has been looking for ways to reach more people," explained Stella Wang, the museum's curator. 

The event is scheduled to end on February 28, 2018