Lead Curator’s Message

On DESIGN TRUST FUTURES STUDIO “Heritage is Creative Generation”

Spiriting new collaborations and embracing the future legacy of cross-cultural production

Our heritage has been our grounding and has brought us innovation. There is no power for change greater than a community discovering and understanding of “heritage is innovation” and how this is creatively passed on to future generations. Analysing and researching the legacy of our rich heritage, this is our entry point into the collectively shaping of our city's future. If culture is based on what people create, and heritage is what we inherit by nature, by history, by culture, then how can we encourage and enhance more dialogue between cross-cultural production to shape heritage as a dynamic force for further positive change and inspirational learning?

Similar to the spirit of DESIGN TRUST FUTURES STUDIO 2019 theme, where Hong Kong-based designers and  cultural makers of Design Trust through deep research, experimentation and critical making, were catalyzing and engaging in an in-depth process to create something new within a site specific location; yet, this year’s version is contextually specific to a range of factors that engage with the Chinese zodiac as a starting point and sited in an imminent location to mark another moment of Hong Kong’s cross-cultural fabrication and future legacy building. This opportune moment arose when Dr. Louis Ng, Director of Hong Kong Palace Museum, and Mr. Freeman Lau Founder of Project Twelve, invited our participation and collaboration to involve designers and creatives from the younger generation to explore. We subsequently created workshops and invited advisors to contribute to the process, and this dynamic; yet invisible process is manifested and charted throughout the studio ethos. Expanding upon this, I have selected our new theme for 2022 “Heritage is Creative Generation”, inspired by ideas of creative generation as simultaneously inheriting and innovating; whilst actively “generating” new ideas, physical craft tests to generate even more impact. As each designer/collective mentee team proposes a new interpretation of one Chinese zodiac work, many new sparks of creativity, innovation, and deepening respect of the richness of our cultural heritage since the neolithic period to the Qing dynastic courts, empowered their research as case studies.

Since late 2021 to now 2022, under the ongoing challenges presented by the wave of pandemic here in Hong Kong, we remain optimistic about cultural production as an act of collaboration to bridge communities during such social distancing measures, and remain active and creative. This year’s DESIGN TRUST FUTURES STUDIO 2022 unlike other earlier editions, a total of six months, includes the research, preparation with a three-month long making and crafting programme as an accelerated, compressed version of DESIGN TRUST FUTURES STUDIO. Spurred further a creative urgency to explore physical/virtual cultural making whilst researching on the history of craft and dialogue around positive values of Chinese heritage and legacy building foregrounded the collective efforts. As our lead commissioning partner Hong Kong Palace Museum opens its doors to the public, this will also mark a new era of cultural production, and with our partnership inspired by Project Twelve, a cultural and design exploratory project using a theme of the twelve animal signs of the Chinese zodiac, to continue its ethos and future creative generation of new zodiac design objects to cultivate new contemporary approaches to making as an intellectual endeavor whilst inspired by the past.

This year we introduced a dynamic dialogue and collective mentoring process of experimenting, where Masters of Design to archaeologist, academic, seasoned design leaders and visionaries, and curators contribute along this three-month long process and rotate around to support the designer-mentee teams, whilst designers amongst themselves interact together to share best practices and concepts. Proving the positive value of cross-cultural synergy and the community we are building in Hong Kong exists vibrantly. Each designer-mentee team has been carefully selected, based on their own focused craft methodology, their skills as industrial designers, architects or graphic typographer to name a few, and their meaningful creative journey within Hong Kong and our DESIGN TRUST foundation. Matched initially with the original precedent and master-designer part of Project Twelve since 2008, albeit a few unable to participate this year. These Hong Kong home-grown and based mentee-designers have specific expertise utilizing methodologies that actively encourage an ethos of sharing. Highlights such as discovering whether use of new biomaterials, upcycled materials to the tender use of the wood joinery or Hong Kong ceramic or local Hong Kong-based artisans specialty in copper, help to fabricate their final work. As designers some actively abstracting the zodiac animal or being inspired by traditional Chinese zodiac arts’ role between humans and animals, the multiplicity of modes and techniques represents the true richness of our design and cultural community. As we learned from the power of the Qing imperial court’s utilization of sustainable materials from centuries ago, and how bold animal to mythical designs show early design values brought new modes of collaboration with artisans and experts, these narratives of making and shaping cultural dialogue and heritage are truly inspirational. The Chinese zodiac project actively builds new conversations as a social connector and bond between us, and has been enlightening to experience the new friendships between the designers, the masters and creative team especially.

With Hong Kong Palace Museum’s opening to the public in July 2022, the partnership and collaboration sparks and accelerates a long-term design, craft and generative collaboration with positive aspirations for the cultural richness and advancement of design research, learning and engagement. Like the 12-year period starting from 2008, where an outstanding Asian artist, architect or designer was invited each year to create a masterpiece sculpture by Project Twelve supported by MK Lau Foundation, using the zodiac sign of the respective year as a theme, we see this continuation as vital and constructive part in cross-cultural collaborations for future legacy building. I sincerely hope you will all enjoy reading, viewing the objects presented in Scholars Commons at Hong Kong Palace Museum, and the special booklet documenting the last six months of our process. This small spark of fresh collaboration will endure a long lasting and long-term project between emerging designers, researchers and scholars to collaborate and creatively generate more. As a firm believer that the role of making with the hands connects the mind as an intellectual pursuit this energy must gain momentum.

Thank you to all collaborators especially Dr. Louis Ng for the enthusiastic opportunity and Mr. Freeman Lau for the trust in our foundation's creativity, master-mentors, designer-mentees, team members especially Zheng Zhou and Mavis Wong and all our partners, for this exciting new journey. Our NGO Design Trust is proud to be part of this growing cultural ecosystem to connect cultures, and generations of designers and scholars to share and learn, and most importantly inspire the public and future generations ahead.