Intercultural Design - Lecture and Projects
07/02/2025 - 21/03/2025 (Week 1 - Week 7)
Intercultural Design - GCD 61304
Lectures and Projects
Table of Content
2. Lectures
3. Tasks
4. Reflection
Project 1 - Proposal
Week 01 - Week 03
Everyday Design is the general topic. The study of design components that are easily incorporated into our daily lives is known as everyday design. Despite not being recognizable or excessive, these designs are vital in forming the functional and cultural aspects of societies. In Project 1 Proposal, we are required to work in the assigned group to generate some initial concepts for drawing on a design language to visually convey our interpretation. Every concept must have a brief justification. To help us generate more ideas, we are required to do visual research. We must look at how design shapes and reflects many forms of culture, behavior, and thinking.
Project 1 Submission Requirements:
A PowerPoint presentation of the proposal that contains:
- 200-word write-up defining and interpreting the design in relation to the chosen cultural elements.
- Citation is necessary as evidence to the research.
- A minimum of 3 preliminary ideas in detailed sketches, each with individual rationale.
- Visual references (visuals that inspire/influence those ideas).
- Picture credits.
Project 2 - Field Study (Data Collection)
Week 03 - Week 05
As a group, we have to gather visual, oral, and textual resources for Project 2 Field Study in order to use them as material for research on the idea we selected for Project 1. The type of artefact and material, its function, its significance, its cultural/historical context, and other relevant information must all be included in the documentation, recording, and preservation of all gathered artefacts and materials.
Data Collection Methods:
- Observation study.
- Interviews with relevant stakeholders (from the lecture series, you may approach any of the guest speakers for an interview, it will make your presentation useful for further research).
- Online and/or actual physical materials: visual research of the selected area (the people/arts/symbols/architecture/text/calligraphic etc.).
Final Project - Portfolio
Week 05 - Week 07
After completing the research, gathering data, attending all lectures and tutorial classes, presenting a complete proposal, and presenting the research data, as design students we have to create a TikTok page to record and share our experiences. The page we create is meant to function as a cultural journal where we document, consider, and imaginatively share our encounters, thoughts, and observations around everyday design. Through interesting short-form videos, we aim to spread awareness of our selected cultural elements. Topic and encourage appreciation for the everyday design.
TikTok Page Structure
Page Name: Choose a memorable name that reflects your theme and focus.
Introductory Video: Create an initial post introducing your theme, explaining your goals, and what viewers can expect from your TikTok page.
Content Series: Develop a series of 5-10 short videos (15-60 seconds each) that explore different facets of your theme. These should be uploaded in chronological order, showing your journey from initial impressions to deeper cultural understanding.
Reflection Video: Conclude your page with a final video reflecting on the trip, sharing insights gained, challenges faced, and memorable experiences.
TikTok Page Submission Requirements
TikTok Page URL: Submit the link to your TikTok page with all the required content uploaded.
Reflection Report: A written report (1-2 pages) summarizing your experience, the insights you gained, and how your understanding of Japanese culture evolved throughout the project.
3.Lectures
1. Do Visual Graphics Exist?
Visuals are a powerful medium for communication. Everything seen and produced by humans carries cultural meaning. Nature itself is a strong data source for design use in meaning and representation.
2. Design and Cultural Context
- Designers must consider cultural nuances, symbolism, and context.
Example:
Sailor Tattoos: Symbolize journeys and experiences of sailors.
Japanese Tattoos: Represent societal status, spiritual beliefs, and protection.
3. Design Significance
Design elements exist within a cultural, social, and political sphere. To simplify cultural studies, design systems help break down and expand on these elements.
4. The Design System: Breakdown Expansion
5. Case Study: Petronas CNY Money Packet (2018)
6. Cultural Sensitivity in Design
- Designers must be mindful of
3. Tasks
The first task was to come up with ideas, as we were looking into idea on the internet it was overwhelming a lot, so we decided to choose 2 ideas per person and there was 6 in the group. After further discussions and voting we came down to 3 ideas:
As for the 3 sketches we decided to do;
I chose to be in charge of the website sketches and research, but I was unsure how to do the sketches of the website to show our Lecturer the progress but with the help of the other group members we were able to discuss and make a sketch. Once everyone was done with their research parts we compiled the research we did into Canva slides and recorded our presentation for the submission of Project 1.
Task 02 - Project 2 - Data Collection
Since our project focuses on Chinese culture , our group decided to do the the following Data Collection methods
1. Interview
The group decided to split into 2 teams as we had received a reply back from 2 teahouse. Unfortunately I was unable to help help for the interviews as the date and time clashed with another module's quiz.
2. Survey
The Survey was prepared by one of our group member, with the help of everyone giving suggestions and feedbacks, the Google form was ready to be shared for respondents. We shared it on our social media for our friends and family to fill it. We received 50+ responses. once the form was closed we compiled data to be shared on our presentation slides and arranged the data as pie charts.
3. First-hand Experience
The was to gather data by playing these games and having a better understanding of the mechanics and player interactions in the games.
4. Secondary Research
For the secondary research our group checked out different websites, articles, blogs and other research materials on Chinese teacups, with this method we were able to dive deeper into our research of Chinese teacups.
For the Final Project we are required to create a TikTok page as our cultural journal. We have to make 30-45 second long videos to communicate with a wider audience regarding our chosen topic.
We decided to create different types of videos, to showcase our chosen topic:
⬪ Infographic Videos
⬪ Interview Clips
⬪ Animatic Videos
I had helped out with one of the animatic videos, Since I'm not too skilled yet with making digital art and have zero experience with animation.... I did my best by hand painting 2 backgrounds for one of the animatic videos. One was a Chinese forest scenery with a river and the other was a Flower field on the hills with an a seaside view, to paint both the scenery backgrounds I used a water color technique with acrylic paint.
4. Reflection
As I think back on our Intercultural Design project on Chinese tea culture, I see how much this experience has enhanced my knowledge and admiration of this age-old custom. At first, I only knew the fundamentals of sipping tea. However, I discovered the complex arrangement of social conventions, art, and history woven into the beauty of Chinese tea through joint efforts and intensive research during this short period of time. Although it was confusing at first, i was still able to enjoy the creative side of the project along with my group members.
We started by researching different topics, having countless discussions and votes and finally deciding on the history of tea in China. Following its development from a medical herb to a staple of Chinese culture. We explored the elaborate tea rituals, where every gesture and action was rich in symbolism and represented social ideals like peace, harmony, and respect. This realization made it clear that tea is more than just a drink; it is a vehicle for expressing aesthetic and philosophical principles for this culture.
First-hand insights into the role of tea in rituals were obtained by speaking with a few people of the community, such as tea masters of teahouses and cultural historians through texts. These exchanges demonstrated how tea strengthens social ties and serves as a bridge in intercultural communication.
The creative element of the project forced us to create tea culture-inspired activities like our sketch ideas of the website and game. This project reinforced the timeless significance of Chinese tea aesthetics by enabling me to adapt classic themes into modern day activities.
My understanding of Chinese tea culture has become more knowledgeable as a result of this group project, from a straightforward drinking custom to a very meaningful and traditional cultural practice that i was unaware of. It emphasized how crucial cultural sensitivity is in design and how beneficial it is to become fully immersed in the cultural contexts when research is done and which influence my understanding of everyday objects and behaviors.
5. Feedback
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