Talk about design itself: what is the source of inspiration for design?

Article Description: Xu Jiang: A bloated design education.

@ Xu Jiang, Professor of Design College, Jiangnan University, PhD in Reading

1. Old classmate, make a self-introduction.

I graduated from the Jiangnan University Design Institute in 2009, obtained a master's degree, and then in Jiangda for two years as a part-time teacher, is currently studying the Southern Yangtze University Design Institute product system design and theory doctorate. I am an old river big, from 03 undergraduate began to read here, this year has been the Nineth years.

2. What is the specific study now? Can you solve any problem?

At present, the research focuses on the design education, in particular, the main research points in the combination of art and engineering education model research. It is expected to solve the problem of comprehensive training for the students of different professional backgrounds in industrial design. is still in the research stage.

3. Now most of the industrial design graduate transformation to do interactive design, Jiangnan University Design Institute's new Dean Xin Teacher is also research interactive design, how do you see this phenomenon?

For this major, because I did not involve, so not too much comment, can only talk about what they saw and heard feelings. In my opinion, interactive design is a big category, in fact, there are a number of areas, for the simplest example, the vacuum cleaner needs to work, you have to press the switch, and when you press the switch, you have an interaction with the vacuum cleaner, which is the interaction design (one type of interaction design). But what I've learned at the moment is that everyone (especially students) often hangs on the tip of an interactive design, referring to interface design. When you mention interactive design, you often think of interactive design such as interface and UI.

For most of the current graduate student transformation to do interactive design, in my opinion, mainly by the following reasons:

1. It is generally agreed that interactive design is to do interface design, UI design, do these designs than to do physical design easier, in fact? I think friends in the industry should have a better say.

2. The salary of the interactive designer is comparatively high.

3. We are now in the information age and the need for interactive design continues to grow.

4. Why do you keep your love for industrial design up to now?

Frankly speaking, because not in the design company, or the design department of the Enterprise, so the current enthusiasm for industrial design is relatively high. Many of my classmates, friends after several years of high-pressure environment chose to give up, although I usually do business design, but in the school after all, unlike the company, there will be a relatively loose environment. Despite the same tough customers, there are at least a bunch of round bosses behind them. Overall, the current design, in addition to subsistence, but also to bring me fun, so it is also enthusiastic about it.

5. From the employment situation of students, either transformation or further study abroad, in China, the development of industrial designers will face a lot of problems?

This is a very heavy topic, because in the school for two years of the book, for the student employment this piece is still more understanding. Students such as Jiangda, who graduated from school, at present, few students are willing to work in the design company, because we all feel that the design company all day overtime treatment is not high, so we have to choose a large Enterprise design department, the results found, or to work overtime, but the salary is indeed better, the benefits are better.

Of course, there are many students go abroad for further study, and become an increasing trend, many students do not go out in the first year, prepare for a year at home, but need to remind the majority of applicants, after studying abroad, also not necessarily find the ideal job, want to stay abroad, more difficult. Over the years, students have asked me about the study abroad, I often first ask him (her) a question: After graduating from abroad to do what? The answer is often to take a step at a glance.

At present, domestic design companies are complaining about not the ideal graduates, for example, Shenzhen Garland Graphic design company, 07 years in our hospital recruitment, the students are very active, including the top students. And the last year or two? Not a single person has been recruited. One of the reasons has been mentioned above, I would like to say another reason: on the one hand, many design companies do exist crazy crush the phenomenon of designers, and students look for work must be around, once listen to their seniors said, six days a week, work overtime to 10, you say, this student dare to go? On the other hand, many design companies in the staff welfare is not in place, the basic Social security insurance is not, although some companies in the name of the company to buy health insurance money directly hit the employee's account, so that employees buy their own, but fools also know that the loss of only employees.

Of course, in my opinion, the most difficult problem is not in the industry, but in the academic sector, conservative estimates, there are more than 400 schools in the country to open industrial design (or product design-related professional), every year to cultivate tens of thousands of industrial design graduates, as far as I understand, In addition to Tibet did not set up industrial design professional teaching (or product design-related professional), other provinces are open, such as Qinghai, Xinjiang, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia and other regions have.

I remember attending an exhibition in Shanghai in 08, when I met an old professor of an Academy of Fine Arts in the southwest of China, and he confessed that their school had 60 graduates of industrial design majors each year, and that they could find the students of the counterpart only 10%, and needed to go to the coast. The serious imbalance between supply and demand leads to the awkward situation that the domestic whole industrial design graduates find work difficult. The reason is the disastrous consequence of the industrialization of education.

Because the creation of art design major, can generate income for the school. At the end of last year in Nanjing to participate in an event, there is a central Plains school teachers asked me whether there are excellent master's degree graduates, they want to start industrial design professional, want to recruit teachers. "Why do you want to run an industrial design major?" "The answer is" the hospital leaders think that the two years of industrial design professional candidates are very hot, very market. "As far as I know, at present there are some schools in the industrial design of the leading figures, or the Department of Directors, are from other professional career change, such a training team, you can expect them to educate what kind of students?"

To change the current difficulties in employment of domestic industrial design students, the difficulty in designing a company is ultimately to solve the problem of industrial design education, or design education. In my opinion, the design profession cannot enlarge the recruit, should do the weight loss movement!!!

6. I could have chosen to be a teacher when I graduated, but I felt that career development lacked variables and gave up. Why do you love the profession of teacher so much? Where is the sense of fun and accomplishment? What are the things that make you happy in the teaching process?

For teachers in this profession, has always been a dream of my own, senior three review stage, has been in the class on the stereo geometry of the solution, every week to give students a lesson, and summed up to find a two-face angle method, the students benefited, so I am very satisfied. From that time began to heart on the germination of the idea of when the teacher, fine Arts college Entrance examination, I reported that the river is also reported to the Southwest Normal University, thinking of Jiangda to the West Division, after graduation when the teacher.

I should say that I am more fortunate, in the environment such as Jiangda have a teaching experience, Jiangnan University the most attractive place lies in the overall quality of its students, these are 100 to pick a good seedling, in this class, you almost do not have to worry about students not seriously, homework not actively completed and so on. Of course, students for the teacher's ability requirements are relatively high, students often in the classroom and after class to ask you a variety of questions, but also in the spare time or weekdays to find the door to let you guide the design.

Let me most gratified is that in the student group has a good reputation, many students like my class, but also look forward to my class. My sense of achievement is that every time I see a student finish a good work, or get a prize for a major competition, it makes me feel motivated to work in the future. In the course of teaching, I am most pleased to break the previous teaching mode and add new teaching content to be affirmed and supported by the students.

7. In your opinion, what is the quality of the students more excellent?

In my opinion, to judge whether a student is excellent, first of all, to see whether his conduct is excellent, learn to do before the design learn to behave, if a student character is not good, design ability again, the future road is difficult to go. Secondly, I think the ability to communicate is very necessary, especially the ability to balance, this ability reflects how many things happen at the same time, how methodically solve the difficulties and problems faced.

Here need to emphasize that the current students reflect a more obvious deficiency, that is, the lack of modelling ability, many people have neglected this problem, teachers in the teaching process has been neglected, students do not arouse attention. In my opinion, the cultivation of innovation ability is important, but as the undergraduate teaching, the cultivation of modelling ability should be in parallel with the cultivation of creative ability.

8. Talk about the design itself, share the latest design? In school, see you with a drawing this day, casually draw sketches, this habit is how to form? At each stage of the content will be different, such as the early focus on lines, skilled after the painting and so on.

Graduate students in the past few years in contact with the design categories, a wide variety, has been engaged in a large design, is a spring and autumn era of antique ship design, due to the issue of commercial confidentiality, on the other hand, this is not my own independent project, so sorry can not show you.

About my sketch, probably from the beginning of the use of the junior, in fact, when the freshman also do similar things, think of what the design is recorded, but not bound into a book, but sporadic scattered paper. For my hand-painted, I think it is not excellent, and the real master compared to still have a lot of gaps.

I have finished drawing four copies, and are now drawing the fifth book, at the beginning of the painting, mainly their own ideas, and then slowly become a collection of other people's good ideas and modelling, and then slowly focus on their own design of the reappearance of ideas, which hand-painted style and methods have changed, at the beginning of the painting more casual, Later slowly the more rigid painting, and then put more open.

9. In the study, Zhang Fuchang teacher said how he designed the kettle, a total of more than 2000 sketches, the idea was to do the design without shortcuts, can only rely on diligent practice. Do you think there is a shortcut to design?

I think there is a shortcut, the shortcut is that you constantly reflect on your own design process, less detours is a shortcut. Of course, diligent practice is essential, no accumulation is impossible to inspire sparks. In my opinion, design to achieve a certain stage, the competition is your experience, and experience from your accumulation, so I often say to students to pay attention to the accumulation during the school, improve their visual quality.

10. What is your inspiration for your design?

As mentioned above, my source of inspiration is mainly in the accumulation of ordinary, and with experienced designers to carry out the necessary communication. Association ability is very important to me, it can help me to see the things in front of me and the accumulation of things in the brain, colliding with each other to produce new ideas.

11. What's your favorite piece of work?

The design, which is now considered to be a better shot, should be the design of the Milkhorn glass Milk Cup, the official souvenir of the Swiss Cultural Foundation (Prohelvetia) and the Swiss Centre for Science and Technology (SWISSNEX).

The design was the result of a 07 participation in Wuzu Workshop in Switzerland, when the theme was: Swiss souvenir design. Here you can also share with you the process of producing this work: at the time of brainstorming, the Swiss students told me that he was going to put the village of Switzerland into the cup and the feeling of a submarine world after the water was poured into it, and I told him why he wanted to put the country in. Why not put a mountain in it, when you finish drinking milk, milk will remain on the peak, this is not a snow-capped mountains? As we all know, Switzerland attracts tourists is the Alpen, Die snow-capped mountains. Then I thought about why I thought of milk, and it was probably the reason why I could drink delicious milk every morning in Switzerland.

12. In your opinion, what is a good industrial design work?

In my opinion, excellent industrial design works should be: the appearance of the United States, good quality, safe and reliable, in line with the psychological and physiological needs of people with positive consumption, to meet the needs of most people's use.

13. The shape of the Apple product is so concise, do you think its design is complex or simple?

At first, I always thought that the apple design was very concise, the product design has become simple, but with the introduction of Apple's new generation, I think he has to do the design complex, why so understanding, the main found that in such a simple shape to make a better look at the simplicity of the modelling more and more difficult.

14. What hobbies do you have outside your job, have you had any particular interest recently?

Because there are still heavy learning pressure, so when not busy design is usually in the book. His biggest sports hobby-basketball has been a long time no touch. Recently prepared to go back to the mountain, activities, and do not activities, will rush to 160 Jin.