A giant cartoon character has unexpectedly emerged among the trees and mist of Hangzhou: American artist KAWS has transformed his famous COMPANION figure into a 30-meter sculpture and laid it on the grass by West Lake, reports infohub.kz.

The installation, titled KAWS:HOLIDAY HANGZHOU, opened on September 24 in Orioles Singing in the Willows Park, part of one of the ten famous scenic spots of West Lake. It can be viewed until September 27, with free admission. Notably, the site is part of the West Lake cultural landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

COMPANION itself looks a little different from usual. KAWS made it in the form of a robot and laid it on its back so that it gazes upward — at the sky and the moon. The yellow color was also chosen deliberately: it references osmanthus, the flower symbol of Hangzhou.

KAWS, whose real name is Brian Donnelly, is an American artist and designer. He started with graffiti and street art, and later created his own characters, which he turned not only into paintings and sculptures but also into figurines. Small versions of his characters eventually became collectibles. KAWS's most famous character is COMPANION, which looks like a cartoon person with a skull-shaped head and crosses for eyes. The artist has for many years transferred its recognizable image onto clothing, design objects, statuettes, and sculptures.

Interestingly, the artist has also made giant versions of his characters before. The KAWS:HOLIDAY project as a whole is built on the idea of sending a huge COMPANION to different parts of the world. Since 2018, such installations have appeared in various countries and cities, with the artist slightly changing the image each time and fitting it into the local context. For example, the giant COMPANION previously appeared in Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong, and in 2024 in Shanghai it was turned into a glowing figure holding the moon.

By the way, along with the giant installation, KAWS has also released a new collection of small figurines in the same robotic design. The yellow version has a glossy finish, while the black one is matte. Both figurines cost about 142,000 tenge each. Sales started on September 24, and a temporary store for the project has also opened in Hangzhou.

Earlier, Kursiv LifeStyle wrote that an unusual version of one of Paris's most recognizable symbols — a giant "broken" Eiffel Tower — appeared in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. The Eiffela Broken Dream installation became part of the Burning Man 2026 festival.