Compared to last semester's event, we've become quite comfortable with the planning and execution of this exhibition. Yet different themes still bring unexpected knowledge and skills. To explore methods of poster design, we tried using an algorithm to extract the dominant colors from photos of artworks to form color schemes. It suddenly occurred to me that I could also use it to analyze the dominant colors of classic paintings, just for fun. And as I played around with it, I discovered a phenomenon I had always overlooked: the dominant colors in many classic oil paintings are remarkably low in saturation. This was quite different from what I had assumed, so I did some research and wrote an article analyzing why digital photographs of classic oil paintings tend to have such desaturated dominant colors (see "The Truth of Color"). Building on that, I extended my inquiry to the use of color in traditional Chinese painting. The low saturation of mainstream Chinese painting is already a well-known consensus, but I wanted to explore the differences or commonalities between the low-saturation choices in Chinese painting and those in classic oil paintings, which led to another article: "Chinese Painting Doesn't Speak Loudly." A bit more "useless" knowledge gained. From all this, I've also reached a conclusion: for many things, don't set too many goals in advance; just start doing, and clarity will come along the way.
Eshibition Preface
This is a story about "seeing" — seeing how posters, pinned on city street corners, hung before museum entrances, and circulated within the confines of screens, carry the cultural breath of a city within the thickness of a single image; seeing how every ordinary passerby, in an unexpected pause, encounters beauty and becomes acquainted with art.
The Boundless Aesthetics Society was born from this vision.
We once conducted a survey. Over sixty percent of respondents told us that their lives lacked a point of entry into art — not out of indifference, but because of distance. Art resources had never truly come close to them. This data filled us with regret, yet it also strengthened a conviction: the threshold of aesthetics can be lower; the boundaries of art should be wider.
And so we took action. Over the course of half a year, our members systematically collected nearly one hundred official posters from art exhibitions across Shanghai, viewing, categorizing, and archiving them one by one. Through this seemingly modest process, we were delighted to discover that each poster is an independent visual universe—some strike the heart with minimalist lines, others lay out feasts of elaborate color, some are classical and restrained, others bold and unapologetic. Diversity, in and of itself, is a form of richness.
This time, we bring these discoveries before you.
Within Square Inches · Aesthetics Without Boundaries — the Poster Art Exhibition — is a comprehensive campus cultural exhibition integrating appreciation, exploration, learning, and creation. It presents four major sections, each with its own focus, reflecting and complementing one another to form a complete journey of vision and mind.
"Beauty by Ballot" is the core and starting point of the exhibition. Based on the dual criteria of online public voting and panel review by our society, we will select the most popular and visually representative works from nearly one hundred official Shanghai art exhibition posters for public display. Each poster will be accompanied by a professional exhibition label interpreting its design language, presenting its visual logic, and including complete exhibition information — so that every viewing becomes a deep encounter with Shanghai's urban art ecosystem.
"A Hundred Flowers in Bloom" is the warmest corner of the exhibition. Here there are no professional barriers, no stylistic restrictions—it is open to every student with a passion for creation. Whether it is a carefully polished design piece or a casual exercise completed between classes, behind every work stands a real creator and a story worth hearing. We believe that the act of creation is itself courage, and the act of showing one's work is itself valuable.
"The Artisan's Principles" is a methodological gift the exhibition offers to every viewer. Through richly illustrated display boards, we will systematically present the fundamental aesthetic logic of poster design — the golden rules of composition, the emotional language of color, the norms and rhythms of typography, and the visual guidance of information hierarchy — using real posters from the exhibition as material, so that theory is no longer abstract and knowledge is within arm's reach.
"The Beauty of Mathematics" is the most original chapter of this exhibition. Mathematics and aesthetics may seem separated by a high wall, yet on the question of "how to quantify beauty," they find astonishing resonance. Our members will employ mathematical modeling methods to conduct quantitative analysis of color distribution and visual elements in posters, dissecting sensory aesthetics through a rational lens and exploring the mathematical patterns hidden behind art. This is an interdisciplinary thought experiment, and the most beautiful handshake between reason and sensibility.
During the exhibition, we will also set up on-site re-voting, an audience message wall, interactive mathematical modeling demonstrations, and small creative workshops, because we have always believed the best exhibition does not ask its audience to look up in awe but invites them to participate.
From the moment you step into the exhibition hall, you are no longer merely a spectator—you are a co-creator of this aesthetic dialogue.
I. Produce a promotional video for the exhibition that tells our story well
Script
It all began with the most ordinary of questionnaires.
We wanted to find out whether the art-loving students around us were actually "making art" in their daily lives. One question yielded a surprising result: over 60% of respondents told us there's a lack of art resources around them.
So we followed up with a question: Are resources really that scarce?
After some research, we discovered that most people's attention was fixed on a handful of "blockbuster" venues in Shanghai. After all, when social media pushes them every day, who wouldn't be tempted? But did you know? According to the Shanghai Bureau of Culture and Tourism, there are ninety-nine registered local art galleries. And that's not even counting the private galleries tucked away in backstreets and alleyways.
Here's what we truly believe: visiting exhibitions might be the lightest step we can take toward art. You don't need any prerequisites; you don't need to master any techniques beforehand. All you need is a pair of eyes and a heart willing to linger. Especially when it comes to contemporary art, those works often speak to the very confusion, emotions, and era we're living through. When you try to see and to feel, your capacity for empathy quietly grows. And that deep concern for the human condition is precisely the most humble starting point of the humanistic spirit.
And so, Art & Beyond began regularly collecting information on local art exhibitions in Shanghai. During this process, we stumbled upon a treasure trove: the official posters of those exhibitions, each one exquisitely designed and crafted with care.
Then, we did something fun: we launched an online vote for "Your Most Admired Art Exhibition Poster," releasing nearly one hundred official posters from Shanghai exhibitions over the past six months and letting everyone vote for their favorite.
If you're watching this video right now, are you already a little curious? Hold on, the top-voted posters are just the first course of our exhibition.
As the saying goes, talk is cheap without action. The second part of the exhibition features students' original poster works: club event posters, tribute posters for beloved artists, posters themed around film and anime characters... endlessly diverse in style, brimming with sincerity. We welcome everyone to come and appreciate them.
Of course, you might say, "I don't draw, and I'm not really into exhibitions." That's fine. But surely you've made an event poster, or a presentation poster for some school project? That's practically an unavoidable skill for every student. So, our exhibition also aims to offer something genuinely useful for everyone.
How do you make a decent poster? We studied industry guidelines and distilled some basic, referenceable standards, all displayed on the panels in the third-floor atrium. Feel free to stop and take a look when you pass by.
But merely "decent"—how could that be enough? Students at Starriver Bay must aim for nothing less than excellence.
We noticed a pattern: outstanding poster design often starts from the colors of the exhibit itself, allowing viewers to sense the theme's character at first glance. So we began to think, is there a way to make color extraction simpler?
And we actually found one. There's a rather clever algorithm, and the principle is essentially this: take all the pixels of an image, toss their colors into a three-dimensional space, and similar colors naturally cluster into "color clouds"; then the algorithm locates the center of each cloud; that's a dominant color. Next, by measuring how large each cloud is, you know what proportion of the image that color occupies. In the end, you get a dominant color palette for the image. However, not just any combination of colors will be harmonious. So we also incorporated validated principles of color aesthetics to evaluate and guide color schemes. Based on this idea, we built a mini-program, and we welcome everyone to try it out when you get the chance. This is the third part of our exhibition.
Finally, let me summarize for you: professionally curated exhibition posters selected through public voting, students' original posters in a variety of styles, practical knowledge on poster design, and a color-matching tool. All of this will be on display from May 18 to May 26 in the third-floor atrium exhibition area.
What are you waiting for? Grab your friends and come check it out!
Art & Beyond: Together with you, discovering more possibilities in art.
II. Design the invitation poster
III. Design and make the exhibition board
Primary Exhibition Board (4 m × 2 m)
Secondary Exhibition Board (4 m × 2 m)
IV. Create special exhibition labels to introduce and explain how the Smart Color Coordination System works
Special Exhibition Label (38cm*53cm)
V. Exhibition installation
Originally, we planned to place the exhibition on both sides of the hall. However, after setting it up, we found that splitting it into two separate zones didn't work well and lacked coherence. So we moved both display boards and all the exhibition stands to the center of the atrium, which turned out much better.
VI. Photos from the event
On May 17, 2026, the Art & Beyond club's Poster Aesthetics campus exhibition officially opened. In addition to the exhibition itself and the promotional video played during morning reading sessions in every Grade 8 and Grade 9 class, we held a roundtable discussion on poster-making at the club's exhibition area at noon on May 21. Under the guidance of club members, everyone appreciated the posters on display, offering their own comments from time to time, and discussed how to create beautiful posters using anime images provided on-site. In this relaxed, enjoyable, and educational atmosphere, we all leveled up our skills!
