Exhibition creates a mood of playfulness

To ease feelings of anxiety, sometimes all it takes is a simple game — such as tossing a marshmallow.

At Moodplanet: Journey of Self-awareness, an ongoing exhibition in Beijing, visitors can cheer themselves up by playing just such a game. They place a marshmallow in the palm of a mechanical hand, pull a trigger, and watch as the candy is tossed onto a table. It may seem like nothing, but it is precisely this sense of "nothingness" that brings smiles to the faces of visitors.

Running at Beijing Times Art Museum until Nov 15, the exhibition brings together artists, designers and scientists who have collaborated on artworks and projects that combine artistic and technological approaches to explore their healing potential. Co-curators Fei Jun and Mao Xiu say the diverse, multisensory experiences are designed to help people better recognize and accept their emotions and, ultimately, let go of negative feelings.