6 Best Idea Awards for the future

6 Best Idea Awards for the future…

Fine Dying was a design showcase and the public’s first encounter with the works delivered from the ‘Design. Living and Dying’ study. It was launched during the Halloween party hosted by William Outcast at the HKDI on 31 October 2013. “After seven weeks of designing for death, the Halloween Party enabled students to think about death as something to be celebrated,” explained William on the opening night. As a pop-up showcase, the design exhibition just opened for four days: 50 ‘tables of ideas’ lined up at the Design Boulevard at the Hong Kong Design Institute to share new ideas proposed by students for death rituals and education, sharing with the public to explore the meaning of life (擁抱死亡, 尊重生命). Visitors were invited to experience and design coffins, design their own obituaries. In order to provoke people into accepting new ideas for more environmentally-friendly death rituals and cause less stress. Additionally, SAGE, the project partner, is keen to award good ideas and promotes them to the real world, by sponsoring six Best Idea Awards across four categories.

SPACE Project (空間轉) Award 1: ‘ A Pure Dialogue’ - Water lilies for sea burial

‘A Pure Dialogue’ illustrates the possible and poetic scenario for water burial. The lotus lanterns carrying the ashes create a soothing moment for the living. The passage between the island and the main site will appear at the lower tide, which represents the indeterminate dialogue between two ‘sides’.

Design Team: Ho Chun Wa, Hung Chak Yu, Law Yat Man, Ng Tsz Ying, Wong Sze Ki

HD Yr 2 (2013), Higher Diploma in Landscape Architecture, Department of Product and Interior Design, HKDI, VTC

Tutors: Sara Wong, Yasmin Chir, PID

SPACE Project (空間轉) Award 2: ‘7 Steps’ - 7x7 cemetery

‘7 Steps’ visualises the possibility of combining tradition rituals with garden burial. The circular patterns on the ground are for the friends and family to scatter the ashes. The complete cycle is to scatter along seven full circles; this corresponds to the importance of the figure of 7 in Chinese traditional ritual of death. Design Team: Chan Oliver, Cheng Hiu Lam, Ho Wing Shan, Lam Ching Hang HD Yr 2 (2013), Higher Diploma in Landscape Architecture, Department of Product and Interior Design, HKDI, VTC Tutors: Sara Wong and Yasmin Chir, PID

OBJECTS Project (信物記) Award 1: ‘Uon’ - 18mins incense clock.

‘Uon’ reconnects two functions of incense: element in the Chinese culture for the ritual of memorial and measuring time. It provides a new way to show respect towards life, death and those that have passed away.

Design Team: Mak Lok Ming, Mac and Tam Cheuk Him, Tim

BA Yr 2 (2013), Department: Faculty of Design, Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi), VTC

Tutor: Beam Leung, THEi

OBJECTS Project (信物記) Award 2: ‘Connected’ - Family tree for family burial

‘Connected’ is a concept for family burial. The metallic tree represents the family tree, for which the family members are still organically connected afterlife. Each branch could contain the ash of one person, and could be added to the main stem one by one.

Design Team: Chan Hei Lui and Ng Sz Nok, Cherry

BA Yr 2 (2013), Faculty of Design, Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi), VTC

Tutor: Beam Leung, THEi

STORIES Project (不老志) Award:

Table stand life history book

A calendar-like spiral-bind design is developed to allow the book can be vertically displayed at home, as a visible tool to attract visitors to read and inquire about the life story of the older person. The portrait of the older person is used as the book cover, which recalls the typical design of biographic publications.

Design Team: Chan Cheuk Fung, Chan Chui Ying, Lam Po Yan, Tsang Pui Yee, Tsang Wing Man, Wong Tsz Tung

HD Yr 2 (2013), Higher Diploma in Printing and Publishing, Department of Communication Design and Digital Media, HKDI, VTC

Tutor: May Wong, CDM

IMAGES Project (造夢紀) Award: Lion Lady

Inspired by an older lady who likes lion dancing, a traditional form of performance that mimic a lion’s movements, a golden lion mask is selected for her. During the experimental styling workshop, the team tried different outfits and styling based on the life story and comments of the elder. The lion mask ended up being transformed into a headpiece, which became the highlight of a Cleopatra-like image.

Design Team: Ho Kai Chung, Hannex; Chiu Pui Sze, Jean; Tam Tsz In, Ingrid; Chan Hiu Shuen, Rose and Lo Tsz Ngo, Kit

HD Yr 3 (HD), Department of Fashion and Image Design, HKDI, VTC

Tutor: Lampros Faslis (visiting fellow), FID