A combination of craftman techniques and international inspirations, innovative approaches and echoes of tradition draws more than 50 works on display. Talented designers under 35, as young Chinese designers, university and design school students showcase their projects in this exclusive setting. The top three, chosen by a jury of sectoral professionals, will receive SaloneSatellite Shanghai Awards and an invitation to take part in the 2019 edition of SaloneSatellite in Milan.
Fan Zhou: «I think design should focus on combination of ideas and technology; now we live in a fast time, so we should design more and more products that meet the fastmoving human consumption. The fundamental elements in my design (as you can see in the project I present at the SaloneSatellite) are the material, including wood and cork, and the idea, including china and western country’s culture. This exhibition is an opportunity to show my products to everyone, listen to the advice of many people, study other designers and their design».
Roy Jia: «I think furniture in the future should be more interesting or have more than one function, bring more surprises to people. That’s why I decided to put an interesting furniture at the Salone Satellite: the furniture in our life is too rigid! I want to release a signal through such a platform. Maybe furniture can be made into activities, like a small animal in life».
Wulena Bao: «At the SaloneSatellite, I exhibit a 2018 graduation design work realized with plant dyeing, “Turn to blue”. As a young Chinese designer, it’s a meaningful thing to integrate traditional culture with modern industrial design. I think that the future design should pay more attention to the culture behind it and to the use of local resources: the environment affects people and people’s needs. In my opinion design should not be a noble curiosity but should enter the lives of the people».
Duan Bingdong: «I think that user experience is not only functional satisfaction, but also spiritual pleasure. For example, designing a chair is not only for sitting comfortable, but also expresses a strong style language and design idea through reasonable structure and materials, bringing interesting feelings to users. I present The Chair at SaloneSatellite, representing the possibility of combining household products with military elements. Fashion products are closely related to military equipments, especially clothing. The equipments can not only meet the conflict demand at that time, but also meet people’s daily life well after being retired from the army».
Yao Yu: «I am exhibiting a wooden bench. I always think that the physical laws of nature are like the wilderness waiting for the resurrection of the sinking wood. The connotation is scattered everywhere in the corner, obviously close to it. No one picks up again. Then, if I can give them a new life by combining furniture, what would it be like? Therefore, I use leverage, balance, and fulcrum as creative inspiration. I also hope that the interaction between the seat and the person will be presented in a way that breaks the gravitation and balances, and places it with the occupants in the natural law».
Zou Xin: «This table is an interpretation of my understanding of furniture and space. In my opinion, furniture is not only furniture, it is more like a living body, every living thing can survive only when it is in harmony with the space. My desk line was inspired by Kandinsky’s abstract composition No. 8. It looks to me like a painting of countless objects in space, but each item is represented by one of its most critical elements. My round table line comes from this painting also from our living space, space is composed of infinite lines, so I want to make a furniture that can be integrated into the space».
Simin Qiu: «This project creates a wave machine that simulates ocean movement to explore the broad and elegant principles underpinning the formation of ripples patterns. It aims to simulate the natural processes of making, and yet achieves a level of accuracy and perfection that are uncontrolled by nature. The ripples of wave stool created by the wave machine are casting by concrete. I’m interested in natural materials and the processes that define nature. I’m working on these projects aim to challenge and broaden the established horizon of traditional material and processes».
