Week 12 Reflection wiriting

Q. Restate your artistic vision statement, Discuss tradition design in connection with your own aspiration and the themes of CTSB

My design strength lies in having a diverse knowledge of various fields related to design, such as interior design, video, animation, product design, and illustration. Instead of having a specific focus of interest, I find myself fascinated by a wide range of design-related tasks. While this may be considered a drawback as it prevents me from specializing and being highly focused, I perceive it as a path that allows me to explore design from multiple perspectives and seek solutions that are closer to the right answers. Therefore, my goal is to become a versatile designer who can professionally address various design challenges as a freelancer. To achieve this, I need to put in dedicated effort to acquire at least expert-level knowledge and skills in all aspects of design.

However, the challenge I face is being an individual with no particular standout expertise that clients can recognize. In this situation, I believe I need to emphasize my style and concept. In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in traditional and retro elements in South Korea. The question arises: why have old things become trendy again after being forgotten and disappearing from memory, especially in an era where traditional craftsmanship was fading away? I think the reason lies in the uniqueness that cannot be felt in everyday life and in designs that are peculiar yet effectively express identity. Traditional elements often hold a special significance that only people from a specific region can appreciate. While traditional items are rare in contemporary settings, they represent the history, style, and concept unique to that region.

For instance, the illustrator known as Wooh Na-Young gained popularity by depicting characters in traditional Korean clothing, Hanbok. Through her artwork, she incorporated the traditional style of Korean clothing into characters, attracting considerable attention. This led her to collaborate with major companies such as Marvel and Disney, showcasing her work through traditional means.

Reviving forgotten elements is not limited to illustrations. In 2022, the National Museum of Korea sold a wireless charging device designed as a traditional piece of furniture called Jagesoban for around S$70. Although this was considered an expensive price for a museum souvenir and charger, it became highly popular, selling out daily. As a designer, traditional elements should be seen as a means of expressing a design style and concept.

Beyond mere artistic expressions like medium or drawing, there are various ways to represent traditional elements, including actions or history. For example, most games in the Netflix drama "Squid Game" are reminiscent of retro games that were popular in Korea in the past. Additionally, the K-pop group BTS incorporates traditional Korean clothing and traditional instruments into their performances.

In this world, there are numerous designers and countless designs, but to make oneself stand out, something special is required. Therefore, I believe I need to make an effort to discover my unique style and consider self-branding through various projects as necessary.

(487 words)

Week 11 Reflection writing

Q. Discuss your manifesto

Our group's manifesto is crafted based on what we learned at CTS, emphasizing self-reflection, self-understanding, and having confidence. Additionally, it addresses recognizing problems or situations in the surroundings and seeking possible solutions as designers. However, I believe that this declaration is too centered on the designer's perspective. I think design is a dynamic process, much like a living organism, and serves as a means of communication that connects the beginning and the end. Therefore, I want to transform the manifesto to include the opinions of various perspectives, not just mine.

I'd like to introduce a book that I read, "Nendo," which features a Japanese design company. The book defines design as the task of 'finding new paths for problem-solving.' It introduces Nendo's working methods, emphasizing that finding new paths involves making users feel something new, experiencing convenience, or resolving discomfort in their daily lives through design. Design should always consider the user, addressing their discomfort from the user's perspective. Therefore, I want to add to my declaration, "Design is a means for users," emphasizing that design should serve as a tool to address the needs and experiences of users.

Secondly, among the communication methods that connect the beginning and the end, if the end is the user, then the beginning will be the client. Depending on who the client is, the start of design may vary, but in most cases, the goal is to increase revenue. This aligns with the ultimate purpose of design. Therefore, I will add, "Designers should not only focus on creating designs for users but also pay attention to branding afterward," reflecting the connection between design and branding, which is a key aspect of my current branding and studio classes. This is because both classes are classes that make designer think about the purpose of the company and the purpose of the festival, respectively.

Finally, in the creative process that connects the beginning and the end in design, designers should inject creative ideas but should not overshadow the design with their personal style. In 2020, during my first-year classes, I read a debate on the difference between designers and artists. The debate focused on 'how far one can define design.' In conclusion, ultimately, it seemed to depend on the intention of the creator. If designers consider both the beginning and the end, the client and the user, their work can be considered design. However, the moment personal flair dominates, it transforms from design to art. Therefore, my last addition to the manifesto is, "Designers must create well-grounded designs," emphasizing the importance of design being rooted in rationale rather than personal artistic expression.

In conclusion, I believe that the essential elements that should be included in the manifesto are thinking from the user's perspective, 'Design is a means for users,' considering the client's perspective, 'Designers should focus on branding beyond designs for users,' and maintaining objectivity as a designer, 'Designers must create well-grounded designs.'

(487 words)

Week 6 Critical Self-reflective

Q.How are you critically self-reflective? Are you?

I used to think that I knew myself better than most people do, not just in terms of personality, habits, and behavior but also in terms of thought processes and how I form human relationships. However, while working on a formal feedback exercise recently, I realized that I may not know myself as well as I thought, especially when it comes to the tasks I'm undertaking and the thoughts I have while completing them. In the 6th-week CTS exercise at Simlim, I prepared a systematic approach for identifying where people might feel uncomfortable and how to address it, along with the pros and cons of the approach. However, when it came to the other submission, I struggled to explain why I chose this topic and how I executed it, and I didn't provide a systematic approach.

For example, when preparing for a food festival rebranding in Studio class, I outlined the concept and why I chose it. But I didn't delve into how satisfying this concept would be from the perspective of festival attendees, what the strengths and weaknesses of this concept were, and how to address its weaknesses systematically. After receiving formative feedback, I realized that I need to improve and rectify this approach.It seems that this aspect was lacking not only in the festival assignment but also in most of my other assignments. In most of my work, it appears to be crucial to go back to the beginning and systematically plan.

In summary, I thought I knew myself well but It was not. After receiving formative feedback, I felt that there is a need to further refine and make improvements in this manner. (275 words)

Week 3 Connecting practice with Society

We are members of a social community, but as intellectual beings with different thoughts and beliefs, we often encounter various conflicts, ranging from minor disagreements to issues like noise disturbances, fraud, and invasions of privacy. In our class group, we created a video on the topic of privacy invasion. Although the video portrayed an ordinary person stalking a celebrity, invasion of privacy is something that frequently occurs in our lives. It extends beyond physical privacy breaches and includes the leakage of personal information on social media and the internet. Furthermore, as technology advances, new developments bring about new problems and conflicts.

Especially recently, the most prominent issue, COVID-19, has caused not only a simple health problem but also various issues such as depression referred to as "corona blue" and economic downturns. However, what I want to discuss now is the issue of environmental pollution caused by the increased demand for masks due to COVID-19. As you may know, masks are disposable, and due to contamination concerns. Therefore, the vast number of masks in use raises concerns about environmental pollution. Nevertheless, there is a creative solution to this problem. A furniture design student named Kim Ha-neul melted down the plastic components of mask filters and used them to create chairs, effectively recycling them.

As a designer, I should not just be conscious societal issues as simple problems but should recognize them as collaborative opportunities. Therefore, I think it's even more crucial to engage with society, seek solutions, and work towards problem-solving.

(250words)

reference: The face-mask seat: a South Korean student's attempt to recycle in COVID times

Week 1 Creative practice and Critical thinking

Creative practice and critical thinking may appear entirely unrelated, but they can complement each other's deficiencies. In my class activity, I delved into the societal issues surrounding AI. I began by introducing the positive aspects and negative reasons associated with AI. Additionally, I discussed the ongoing problem of numerous writers in the film industry, like Marvel, going on strike due to AI's impact. By presenting both the positives and negatives of AI simultaneously in my writing, I aimed to prompt readers to engage in critical thinking. Ultimately, I sought to introduce current societal issues and propose solutions, thus showcasing what I consider to be a creative practice.

In the process of working, I believe that critical thinking is the foundational step of researching information or planning before starting a task. On the other hand, creative practice is the approach to work with one's creative identity using the prepared information. Without creative practice, the work conducted would be nothing more than a collection of information that anyone can find with minimal research. Conducting work without critical thinking would result in doing tasks that are unreliable and likely to fail. Therefore, we need to use both critical thinking, which helps us discern what is accurate information from false information within the flood of countless data, and creative practice, which allows us to express our unique identity, in order to progress and succeed. (230words)