Blog Assignment 8

Nowadays, as the environmental deterioration is becoming increasingly important, governments started to promote an idea of sustainability and reusability. This ideological message informs design, and lends contemporary designers to create thing that consumes renewable energy resource. For example, the solar toys from above image. This kind of toy suddenly became popular in China since last few years. The reason for this is the sustainable idea of using solar energy to provide a small action in the cute looking toy. It is free-pollution and self-rechargeable.

From the example, I feel that politics and design is two inseparable ideas. They influence each other, and have the same purpose lend people to have a better life. Design could be seen as a policy that the government use to promote their ideology, and politics could be seen as a leader tells design which way to go.

Image is from http://www.guangyigongyipin.cn/athena/offerdetail/sale/guangyigongyipin-181305-629237344.html

Blog Assignment 7

As a designer, I think I have the responsibility to consider the global problem such as inadequate resource and environmental degradation. Then, I am able to use my design to manipulate people’s taste in order to solve the problem and make people live in a harmonic way with nature.

In addition, I do not think my unique background will strongly influence the way of how I design. The real element, which will affect how I do and what I do, is the way of how I am taught and what I am taught.

The reason I believe this is people start to traveling around the world frequently and easily these days. In other words, people who come from different backgrounds are able to get to together and share their culture, knowledge and thought. Globalization is happening in every field include design, especially New Zealand where I could meet people from all over the world and be taught by lecturers from several countries. I seem like a sponge absorbs all the knowledge and ideas around me. Those ideas inform my approach as a designer, and my background is just a part of the whole.

Blog Assignment 6

Bauhaus, the most widely known school of the design history, represents the best-recognized design movement in the past. It founded the fundamental pedagogy of design, which schools still use in now days. For example, Bauhaus provided the common first semester that introduced materials, drawing techniques and forms to students and stimulated their interest in these creative technologies before they focus on a particular workshop. In my first year of design, the study system is very similar to the course only the time became longer. For having the common study course, both schools have the same purpose that is giving students the creative ability and a genial idea of all kinds of design in order to make them aware about which particular workshop they are truly interested. Furthermore, these two schools teach students both techniques and philosophies of design, which allows students to have the skills of both craftsmen and designers. In addition, you could see from both schools that the change of social situation causes the change of design school’s ideology. Therefore, nowadays educational system of the design schools are developed basic on the Bauhaus’ fundamental pedagogy, we could still see many similarities between both systems. What might the future design school look like? We will find out soon.