Intercultural Design - Everyday Design

 06/02/2024 - 21/03/2024 (Week 1 - Week 7)

Intercultural Design GCD61304 / Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology (Hons.)
Sultan Rey Delviero / 0377830

Everyday Design

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JUMPLINKS

1 : Instructions

2 : Lecture

3 : Project

• Task 1 : Proposal
• Task 2 : Data Collection
• Task 3 : Final Project

4 : Feedback

5 : Reflection

TikTok Page Link : @dailysedap

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INSTRUCTIONS

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LECTURE

Week 1 : Culture and Design

Culture and Design are two things that are inseparable. Culture in design is crucial to provide inclusivity, so it would encompass more functionality and experience of the people that interacts with it.

Fig 1.1 Various tree designs

An example can be taken from the previous images. Trees as itself has a common shape that are always similar to each other. But with a certain cultural element implemented in the design, it changes our perspective on how we determine the meaning of the visual image.

Fig 1.2 Design Significance 

The image above explains how by understanding the significance of graphics in its cultural studies, philosophy, sociology, and origin history, we can identify a design's social, cultural, and political spheres where the design elements reside.

Fig 1.3 Design System

The image above shows how in design, common elements that has a widely known meaning can be a focal point in designing something with culture. As different cultures may view it with different meanings, it is important to know our audience, or to make it acceptable for a more diverse audience.

Design Sensitivity

In designing, we have to be aware of a certain culture's sensitivity to avoid any controversy or insult towards a culture.

• Symbolism and Imagery: Certain symbols and imagery might carry a different meaning in different cultures.
• Color Considerations: Colors might have different meanings and culture significance.
• Typography and Language: Choosing the appropriate font and text styles are important, and adding language variations is also crucial for reaching a wider audience.
• Inclusive Design: When designing products and experiences, make them accessible and inclusive for people of all cultural backgrounds, abilities, and needs.  
• User Research: Conducting user research and ethnographic studies is important for designers to understand and gain insight from various cultural preferences and behaviors.  
• Localization: Adapt designs to specific cultural contexts to enhance its relevance and acceptance.  
• Cultural Awareness Training: Train design teams to develop deeper understanding in diverse perspectives and sensitivities.

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PROJECT

Task 1 : Project Proposal

Week 1 & 2 : Generating Idea

On the first week, we were guided to create a proposal for our final project with the theme "Everyday Design", to observe and analyze any design that has been integrated in our daily life, for instance, road signs or food. We were given several topics for us to decide on what to work on, such as the following :

• Urban Design & Infrastructure
• Product Design
• Retail & Consumer Culture
• Cultural Practices
• Technology Integration
• Fashion & Street Style
• Civic & Cultural Symbolism

As I was chosen as the group leader, I led and brainstormed with my group, and finally came up with playing cards with Malaysian culture design implemented in it. This idea didn't last long, as we were consulted that playing cards weren't a big part of Malaysia's everyday culture.

After consulting, we came up with several other designs, some that focuses on applying the culture's design onto the product for its aesthetics purposes, such as handheld fans and Touch 'N Go cards, and some more emphasized on functionality, like straws, cupholders, and school design.

We decided that cupholders are our most developed idea. We analyzed how we will benefit from it and how we would use it in our daily life. When eating out in a mamak or a hawker centre, it is often that the tables lack space, leaving no space for our belongings, food, and drinks. We also tried to expand the idea by making it have a bag holder. The following images are the sketches that my teammates did :

Fig 2.1 & 2.2 Liu Cheng Rui's Sketches

Fig 2.3 Brenda Wynn's Sketch

Fig 2.4 & 2.5 Edgar Flavio Tanjung's Sketches

Week 3 : Proposal Finalization

After further consultation on week 3 with Mr. Charles,  We were told that cupholders are something that is already sold widely on the market, and there is no need to develop it further. So, with our food theme still in mind, we decided to change our topic to Documenting Malaysia's Food Culture.

I divided and gave my teammates their work division, with myself working on explaining the rationale, purpose statement, how the theme relates to everyday design, video ideas, and the design of the presentation slides.

Task 1 Proposal

Fig 2.6 Proposal

Task 2 : Data Collection
Week 4 & 5 : Field Research

After discussing on how we should collect our data, we decided to do it in 2 ways, which are netnography/online research, and field study. For the fourth week, we decided to collect clips and information from the following places :

• Mamak - Nasi Kandar Shaaz & Nasi Kandar Ali Bistro 
• Hawker Centre - Rock Cafe & Tang City Food Court 
• Kopitiam - Chan Oi Yee Kopitiam & Kafei Dian  
• Warung - Blendik, Warung Jaya, and Taylors' Roadside Warung 

We initially only thought about taking clips about the food and ambience of the place, but after consulting with Mr. Charles, he said that we should focus on things that builds the culture itself, not only limited to what food or places, but also the process, the familiarity that we take for granted everyday, and the underappreciated parts of the culture itself. 

For the fifth week, we sorted out the clips that we had taken before and continued with our online research to confirm and clarify the information that we had gotten before in our field study as the guideline.

Task 2 Data Collection 

Fig 2.7 Data Collection

Google Drive Link - Physical Recordings

Task 3 : Final Project Progression
Week 6 & 7 : Editing & Finalization

For finalizing the videos, we divided our work to compile assets that we will use in the video. I mainly worked on doing the voice overs, making the script for the video, and choosing which clips to put, before my teammate finalizes the video.

For the script and voice overs, I tried to make some videos uplifting and spiritful, such as in the Nasi Kandar Shaaz video & the Warung Maju Jaya/Blendik videos, and some videos more relaxed and warmer like the Chan Oi Yee Kopitiam & Kafei Dian videos, depending on the mood of the clips and place.

I also made sure that the voice over I did matches the clip that it will be put over, and made the order of how the clips will be shown in a progressive way, while highlighting elements that we discovered interesting.

For our TikTok account name, we decided to give "SedapDaily" as it's name, where "Sedap" means delicious in Bahasa Melayu, and "Daily" refers to the Everyday Design Theme.

Task 3 Final Project

Fig 2.8 Final Presentation

Fig 2.9 TikTok Page

TikTok Link - @dailysedap

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FEEDBACK

Week 2 :

• Playing cards are a culture that is limited only to the Chinese society in Malaysia, thus it cannot be considered as Everyday Design, and made us pivot to cupholders instead.
• We were advised to also think about functionality and what will ease a certain culture's everyday life, rather than focusing on implementing a culture's aesthetics onto a product.

Week 3 :

• We were informed that cupholders are something that is already commercially sold widely in the market, and there are little ways to improve it. We tried making it retractable for it to be portable and extended the idea by adding bag hook/holder in the design, but the structure won't be sturdy enough to hold all the weight of the drinks and bags, as it is meant to be easily carried around without taking space.
• After further consultation, we changed our idea to Documenting Malaysia's Food Culture.

Week 5 : 

• After consulting again with Mr. Charles, we thought that we already have enough clips to focus on the food and the place. But he told us that is not the only thing that builds food culture. He advised us to focus on things that are taken for granted, such as the process of making a certain dish, something that is important but often underappreciated, or about how modern culture has fused with the traditional ones.

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REFLECTION

During the span of 7 weeks of learning in this module, I will say that I faced a lot of difficulties. As the only Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology (Hons.) student among my groupmates and being chosen as a group leader, I was always confused as I wasn't aware of how things work outside of my course's modules. Luckily, my teammates always corrects me whenever I do something that isn't correct enough, for instance, doing my E-Portofolio without the MIB and doing our presentation slides without caring for the unity of the theme, and I am very grateful for my teammates. 

One thing I find quite interesting to do, is waking up my teammates before every class or meetings. While being the group leader, I felt the importance of the presence of every one in my team. With our classes and meetings always being held in the morning, I understand that it might be hard to wake up after pulling an all-nighter the night before. And, I don't mind waking them up every time I needed to.

My personal experience in exploring different locations in Malaysia is very memorable. From giving less attention and just to finish the assignment, to discovering something that made me appreciate the culture more.

I initially thought that we were just going to highlight the food and the dining place itself. But from what I have observed during our data collection after Mr. Charles consulted us, it is definitely more than that. I learned that the process, the curation of the culture, and the feeling of familiarity, such as the sounds and smells, are also a foundation of the culture. In my eyes as an International Student, observing the people as they dine in those iconic places as an everyday routine intrigues me and made me miss home.

I see this project not solely as an assignment, but as a way for me to connect to the culture, to appreciate things that I took for granted, for me to improve myself as an individual in terms of working in a team, and understanding other perspectives that I often neglect.