Intercultural Design (Continous Assessment)

CHONG CHENG TAO (0371072)

Bachelor of Design in Creative Media

Intercultural Design

Lecture:

In this class, Miss Anis shared with us some brief knowledge in the aspect of visual design and intercultural design. 

Miss Anis said visuals are powerful persuasive medium to provide information to the world. Majority of people receive more information in visual than other mediums, people respond faster to visual information too. 

Definition of visuals:

1. Visuals are everything that can be seen

-The definition is wide, all-inclusive including nature.

2. Visuals are everything created by humans that can be seen

-They are created purposely for visual representations that has function and content.

Cultural sensitivity:

-Culture and design are inseparable.

-Designers need to be aware of cultural nuances, symbolism and context to create designs that are inclusive for diverse audience.

-Cultural sensitivity in design should go beyond aesthetics.

-Symbolism and Imagery, color considerations, typography and language should be in our consideration when creating a design

Miss Anis gave us the example of tattoos in sailor community and Japanese culture. Tattoos in two culture give different definitions and impressions to the public.

Sailor tattoo

Japanese Tattoo

Then, Miss Anis talked about the design significance and design system, These information can be used to identify the social cultural and politic sphere where the deisgn elements reside.

Miss Anis also gave us a counter-example, which is the Petronas CNY Money Packet design in 2018. Pale white was used as the background colour of the design with Chinese calligraphy art. However, white is the colour reserved for death in Chinese culture, which representing misfortune.

This is the Module Information Booklet for this module:

Theme: Cultural Sensitivity in Design

The general theme is “Cultural Sensitivity in Design”. We need to study a cultural phenomenon, or a particular subculture that is perceived as ‘sensitive’, and “frame” our study within the chosen theme. We need to produce some preliminary ideas on how to visually express the message using design language with a short rationale.

Project 1 (Proporsal):

Week 2-3:

We were instructed to form a group of 6 to discuss about the theme. Firstly, we all agree that it is ideal to choose culture or event in Malaysia to ease the execution of field study section. We have quite a few of idea suggested by the team members such as Baba Nyonya culture, Batik culture, LGBTQ watches incident and Chinese calligraphy culture. Eventually, we had a final discussion via Google Meet and we had selected Baba Nyonya culture as our topic.

The reason we chose this topic is because of the uniqueness of Baba Nyonya culture. Baba Nyonya culture is a unique culture that include a fusion of diverse cultures in Malaysia which can be seen as a native “Malaysian” culture. However, this culture is gradually losing its status among the public due to some factors. Thus, we are aiming to conserve the Baba Nyonya culture that is fading away in Malaysia.

Next, we decided to focus on the elements and symbols of Baba Nyonya culture. The aesthetic of these elements shows the fusion of different cultures and was very amusing to us.

Throughout the research process, we came up with the idea of utilizing this cultural element in modern items.We think this is a good way to familiarize the public with this culture.

Design sketches:

Proposal Document:

Final Proposal Slide:

Proposal Presentation:

Project 2 (Field Study):

 

Week 4:

This week, we are going to have our field study section. We had confirmed that symbols and elements in Baba Nyonya culture is the part we want to have further investigation.

We decided to go to the Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum in Melaka to have physical research. Thus, we split our groups into two. Zack, Shrihaan and I will go to the museum, while Riyaan, Sun Qing and Marvin will continue to do online research.

We decided to create a google form too for online survey. We want to have opinions from the public about the product design.

We had divided the role more specifically:

Riyaan: Google form analysis

Sun Qing: Visual reference (online) & design

Marvin: Product study

Cheng Tao: Visual reference (musuem) & design

Shirihaan: Musuem & trip study 

Zack: Interview

Some visual reference taken from Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum:

Google form: Baba Nyonya culture

Unfortuntely, the Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum is no longer open for personal interviews. Therefore, we decided to interview the locals to find out their views on this culture.

Interview with Ms Janet:

Field Study Slide (Final Data Collection):

Project 3 (Final Project):

Week 5:

After our field study, we started to work on our final design. Initially, we focused on applying batik art style in Baba Nyonya elements.

In our first consultation with Miss Anis, she approved this idea and she was willing to see more versions of design. Simultaneously, she wanted us to show clear and detailed sketches.

Week 6:

Besides batik art, we tried to visualise our design in modern graphic art which received positive review from Miss Anis. She encouraged us to expand the idea, which is creating a brand for our design. 

Week 7:

We were working on creating our brand, Champor Brilliance in this week. “Champor” means “fuse” in Peranakan language, which fit our idea in fusing modern item with Baba Nyonya elements. Then, we decided to focus on streetwear in Baba Nyonya style.

Champor Brilliance (Brand Logo)

We chose lotus flower as our logo as it is a significant element in Baba Nyonya culture. According to our Google form analysis, the public also recognise the connection between Baba Nyonya culture and lotus flower too.

We visualised Baba Nyonya elements in our design in three direction:

1. Batik art

2. Modern graphic art

3. Ukiyo-e art

Final product design:

Link to final product design

After that, we set up a website to showcase our product.

Link to website

Final Project Slide:

Final Project Presentation:

Reflection:

I enjoyed this module as we have the freedom to choice the topic. Throughout this module, I learnt more the Baba Nyonya culture in different aspects. I'm glad to have this opportunity to have a deep understanding towards a culture.

Besides that, this is the first time I try to include the factors like cultural sensitivity, marketing strategies and consumer in a creative process. As a future creator, this module has give me important lessons.

The hard part of this module is we are free to express anything, thus we have too many directions to go. It was a tough decision to decide which part of the culture is essential to showcase.