Phone booths in Beijing have been painted to resemble Baymax, the robot star of the Disney animated film Big Hero 6, by a group that wishes to draw attention to what was once an essential means of communication.

People have lost interest in the booths because of the advance of mobile technology, and the group hopes the project will remind them of their existence and encourage them to talk to their loved ones more often.

"Telephone booths are a bit like dreams - people walk past them every day but have forgotten about them," group member Jiang Bowen, 25, said on Tuesday.

Eight members gave makeovers to more than 30 orange booths in the Wudaokou area of Haidian district on Saturday night. The new white paint and round black eyes make them look like the head of Baymax - an inflatable and cuddly robot designed to serve and protect its master in the Oscar-winning movie.

The members were all born in the 1990s and have left their hometowns to pursue their dreams in Beijing. The Baymax project is their first city art venture.

"I see those phone booths every day on my way to work," said Jiang, an art graduate who works as a graphic designer. "It is quite sad to see them lose their paint and become covered with advertisements due to a lack of maintenance.

"They were once the links between those who work in Beijing and their loved ones back home. Now everyone has a mobile phone, so the booths seem to be abandoned."

Businessman Tuo Zhendong, 33, put his mobile phone away and had a look inside a Baymax booth. He dusted off the thick layer of dust on the phone, and was surprised to see it still works.

"I haven't used a public phone since 2003 and maybe we just don't need them anymore, no matter how pretty people make them look," he said.

University student Han Yu, 21, took a selfie with a Baymax booth with her mobile phone.

"I love the idea of giving the phone booths a makeover," she said. "I hope the authorities will leave them as they are instead of seeing this as vandalism.

Jiang described the painting of the booths as a "crime", and said the group altered them in the middle of the night to avoid the authorities.

They initially gave Baymax makeovers to two booths as a trial run, and they were painted back to orange within a day.

"It is still a good thing even if the authorities cover the Baymax design, because at least the booths will be repainted," Jiang said.

Phone booths in Beijing are painted a uniform shade of orange, and repainting them without permission is prohibited. A staff member at the municipal administration office in Haidian district said the phone operator will be asked to deal with the Baymax booths.

Jiang added: "People are under a lot of pressure. If the Baymax phone booths make people smile on their way home we can call our project a success."

cuijia@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 04/08/2015 page5)