All going swimmingly – Terada Mokei's sporty sculptures make a splash

So, we’re fairly inundated with sporty visuals these days, as all manner of superhero-esque London antics are projected across the globe. But they’ve been absolutely captivating, so here are some more!

Olympian perseverance, in an architectural context, was what inspired these wonderful projects by Japanese architect and designer Naoki Terada. Recognising the vitality that miniature humans give to an architectural model, yet acknowledging that these were often the stressed-out last-minute additions after a series of sleepless nights, he devised a series of pre-prepared sets, appropriate for a variety of building projects. Even without shelter, however, these little paper models – built on a 1/100 scale – conjure up their own environments. The beautifully designed Competitive Swimming , Men’s Gymnastics , and Football sets, with their silhouette, pictogram-style figures and digital-style cut-out numerals, evoke the visual tradition of the Olympics, while the uniform colour of each set allows us to reflect on the formal and negative spaces that operate so effectively.

Just like watching the Games, we can marvel at the persistence, ambition, enthusiasm, fragility, and potential involved. And, we can even have a go at making them ourselves (it’s all about participation, right?). Bravo!