Looking for modern trends to make your event decor stand out? Balloons and inflatables are having a resurgence in popularity this year. We’re not talking about a few tied to tables or even a door archway — modern balloon installations are creative, eye catching and perfect for Instagram feeds. Balloons and inflatable sculptures are being favoured by modern visual artists, with installations like the incredible white balloon cloud in London’s Convent Garden and the world-travelling giant rubber duck inspiring the trend.
Of course, your event installations don’t need to be as elaborate as the two just mentioned! We have found six modern balloon art ideas that can be either purchased or used for inspiration to jazz up your events this Spring and Summer.
1. Super-sized balloon installations
Using a variety of colours and sizes for balloons creates a spectacular effect and can be used to create sculpture-like installations.
How to replicate: Rather than uniform size or colour, selecting different sized balloons in complementary colours within a single palette can create all kinds of unique shapes that suit your event or brand. Modern event stylists such as The Bespokery can also help to create these installations.
Adelaide’s Rundle Mall celebrates their 40th birthday by decorating The Spheres sculpture with balloons from Little Big Balloon Co.
2. Interactive balloon display
We all know that event decor can influence what is shared on social media by your guests. When the National Gallery of Victoria hosted the youth-targeted Andy Warhol and Ai WeiWei exhibition, this was embraced with the use of a balloon installation by Ai WeiWei. In an interactive play space, guests were invited to play with foil balloons. The balloons on their own (representative to mock China’s social media censorship) would have gained interest on their own, but by creating an immersive experience it became the hottest spot for guests to take Instagram happy snaps.
How to replicate: You don’t need to have a world-renowned artist at your disposal to create a fun balloon-filled play space for adults and kids alike. Select fun shapes and set aside a well-lit area with signs encouraging guests to unleash their inner child.
Ai WeiWei takes a selfie with his installation ‘Caonima and Bird Balloons’
3. Clear bubble balloons
Clear balloons can create a dazzling effect, as if the room is filled with giant bubbles. This subtle but unique effect can be used for anything from sophisticated corporate events, to creating a theme such as ‘Under the Sea’.
How to replicate: Clear ‘bubble strand’ balloons can be purchased from balloon suppliers, or clear balloons can be fixed to a clear string such as fishing wire.
Bubble-strand balloons from Balloons etc.
4. Novelty balloons
They might seem a little cheesy, but novelty balloons and inflatables are extremely popular on social media right now, particularly with Millennials. One look at Instagram this Summer will see your feed filled with girls posing on giant swans and flamingos. Modern novelty balloons can be a fun addition to a photo booth and help create share-worthy spaces around your venue.
Champagne balloons like this one from Etsy are ideal for end of year celebrations
5. Giant balloons
Giant balloons have started to become commonplace at music festivals – launching the inflatables into the crowd to pass around like a modern version of the classic beach ball.
6. Glowing balloons as ambient lighting
Balloons can be made to glow in the dark, creating an ambient lighting feature and creative nighttime effect. Perfect for Halloween parties or dark spaces. If you have a water feature in your venue such as a pool or pond, they can also be floated in the water.
How to replicate: Crack a glow stick and insert it into the balloon as inflating to create the glow-in-the-dark effect.
Looking for more inspiration to get your event talked about online? Check out ‘5 ways to get more people sharing your event on social’.
