Taiwan blue whale wins US balloon art contest

台灣藍鯨贏得美國氣球藝術大賽

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A 25-year-old balloon artist from Taichung, Sung Chun-lin (宋俊霖) won first place at a US balloon making competition July 11 with a balloon interpretation of a Taiwan blue whale. 

Sung participated in an annual competition held by Qualtex, an American balloon manufacturer. A list of strict guidelines are posted, including colors, on the Qualtex website and the contestants were allotted a limited time to complete the challenge. Sung won in the navy color category. 

The whale was constructed from 170 balloons and 12 hours of labor. 

(CNA image) 

Sung studied digital science and design in college, however as a sophomore he began taking balloon modeling classes and discovered a dormant passion. As a novice he created balloon swords, flowers, and lollipops, before advancing on his own to study more intricate designs, according to CNA. 

After graduating he moved to Japan to study balloon modeling for one year and competed twice in local competitions. Even though he enjoyed living in Japan, Song wished to return to his roots in Taiwan. 

(CNA image) 

Once Sung completed military service, he returned to practicing balloon modeling everyday. He says practice is imperative. Simply start with a long balloon and experiment twisting it to various proportions, symmetry, equilibrium, etc.