Gathering and Separating: students display creative designs in exhibition
2022-01-12
(Provided by Program in Interdisciplinary Studies) Two years from the first confirmed case, the epidemic is on the rise again. Having to wear masks, we often feel a sense of distance, we fear, we feel sad, we feel at loss. The course in Creative Design of the Program in Interdisciplinary Studies at NSYSU organized a design exhibition "Starting from love”, following a similar event last year. This year’s edition revolved around the epidemic and took the concept of distance as the starting point, exploring its tangible and intangible form.
The theme of the exhibition, “Gathering and Separating”, was conceived by students Ya-Chi Yu of the Department of Information Management, Tsen-Yu Chang of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature, Yan-Yu Su of the Department of Mechanical and Electro-Mechanical Engineering, and Dan Wang of the Department of Information Management, who illustrated how, under the constraints of distance, some look forward to being together and some have no choice but to separate. Seven teams of students demonstrated their creative design thinking through the exhibits, related to the distance between parents and children, customers and products, people and monkeys, distance in long-distance relationships, students’ careers, goals, and nature.
The idea of Lala Coaster is to bring young people closer to their parents. Parents and children who don't know how to talk after an argument can record their conversation using the Coaster during the morning coffee time. The Love Message Board is a gadget for student couples who can't meet. They can use the temperature of handwriting for messages to appear on the electronic screen and feel each others’ care and longing. The Sandy Memories is a gadget designed to make university students feel the passing of time through the collection of hourglasses and important objects, making them realize graduation is right behind the corner. “If you have a goal, your dreams are not far”. This is the design concept of the Treasure Chest, which aims to motivate people to complete their tasks by unlocking them one by one.
The Easy Taker is to help customers with short stature pick up items from higher shelves in stores without bothering the staff. Monkey Prevention Tool uses sound frequencies and a chest bag for food to fend off monkeys on campus and prevent them from snatching food. The Healing Plants Fragrance Dispenser is a response to the changes in modern people's working schedule that makes it difficult to go out and connect with nature. The Dispenser releases different fragrances at set times, letting people get closer to nature.
In fast-changing times, there are many new issues to reflect on and solve. Assistant Professor Shu-Mei Chang of NSYSU Program in Interdisciplinary Studies started a course in Creative Design. The methodology stimulates students to generate creative and innovative solutions when facing different issues, emphasizing both theory and practice. The course students are expected to be able to apply the methods learned in the classroom when encountering different challenges in the future, and let innovative thinking guide them.