On the afternoon of June 27, the fifth exchange session themed "Why Images of COVID-19 are So Colorful" was hosted by Prof. Fang Xiangfeng, Vice Dean of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design and Editor-in-Chief of the ZHUANGSHI journal.

Group photo of guests and some staff members of the fifth academic exchange session

A/Prof. Wang Xiaomo of the Department of Art History of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design pointed out that virus images play a vital role in mobilizing all the people to "fight against the pandemic". Design is a kind of discourse, and the construction of design discourse is also a choice of value. A/Prof. Deng Yan of the Department of Information Art & Design, the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design, pointed out that the process of image manufacturing is an unavoidable factor and issue when we read images today. On the contrary, image manufacturing itself is a kind of feedback to collective consciousness and public consciousness.

A/Prof. Wang Xiaomo delivers a speech

A/Prof. Deng Yan delivers a speech

Ms. Elena Jarmosh, a professional graphic designer based in London, England, discussed the difference and relationship between virus images used in scientific demonstration and mass communication. A/Prof. Inagawa Kenji from Kanazawa University College of Art mentioned that in Japan's pluralistic context, we need to step out of the images and pay more attention to the background beyond the images. Prof. Takahashi Haruki, also from Kanazawa University College of Art, discussed the color presentation of virus images from an emotional point of view.

Prof. Haruki Takahashi delivers a speech

On the afternoon of June 28, an academic exchange session themed "Design in a Post-COVID World" was hosted by Prof. Zhao Chao, Deputy Dean of Academy of Arts & Design in Tsinghua University, and Vice Dean of Art and Science Research Institute in Tsinghua University.

Group photo of guests of the sixth academic exchange session

Mr. David Grossman, Past President of International Council of Design, noted that design should build cohesion and strong professional standards, consider social culture and environment, and make good use of new technologies to bring higher value to customers and society. Vesna Popovic, Professor Emerita at Queensland University Technology, and World Design Organisation Adviser, emphasized the concept of design leadership, and the reduction of the impact of uncertainty by integrating knowledge and interdisciplinary design.

Prof. Vesna Popovic delivers a speech

Prof. Ashley Hall, Head of MRes in Healthcare Design at Royal College of Art, noted that the original confinement of design and medical treatment should be broken, the inherent thinking mode should be emancipated, and the integration beyond discipline restrictions should be formed in a new context.

Prof. Ashley Hall delivers a speech

Finally, Prof. Zhao Chao shared his ideas, noting that the design paradigm in the future world will be the innovation of cooperation between art and science. He also introduced six research platforms and five research focuses of the Art and Science Research Institute in Tsinghua University as well as the future research and practice of health care design and social media design in the post-COVID era.

Prof. Zhao Chao delivers a speech

On the evening of June 28th, the sixth academic exchange session was held as scheduled, hosted by Assistant Professor Feng Fan of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design. The theme was "Beyond Anthropocene: Ecological Wisdom in Art".

Assistant Prof. Feng Fan hosts the session

Ms. Betti-Sue Hertz delivers a speech

Prof. Peter Krieger delivers a speech

Prof. Millie Chen delivers a speech

Following Feng Fan's opening speech entitled "Ecological Wisdom in Art", Prof. Peter Krieger of Architecture and Art History of National Autonomous University of Mexico, Prof. Millie Chen of University at Buffalo, State University of New York, A/Prof. Zheng Bo, Ph.D. Program Head at School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, and Prof. Betti-Sue Hertz, Director and Chief Curator at Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University, rendered keynote speeches respectively.

A/Prof. Zheng Bo delivers a speech

Group photo of guests and some staff members of the seventh academic exchange session

On the afternoon of June 29th, the eighth exchange session was held on the theme "New Challenge, New Strategy", hosted by Prof. Cai Jun, Professor of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design and Director of Design Management Research Lab, Arts & Science Research Center, Tsinghua University.

Prof. Cees de Bont delivers a speech

Prof. Cees de Bont, Dean of Loughborough School of Design and Creative Arts School, Pro dean of the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of the Delft University of Technology, and Pro dean of the School of Design of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, noted that design should have a vision of the overall picture, and design is a complex. After the pandemic, strategic design, medical and health design, digital design and other design fields will be the key contents of future design.

Prof. Cai Jun hosts the session

Prof. Yang Dongjiang, Vice Dean of Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, and Director of Academic Committee in Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, explored the impact and challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic on the teaching and learning of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design, and introduced the teaching and senior project exhibitions conducted under abnormal conditions.

Prof. Yang Dongjiang delivers a speech

Finally, enthusiastic dialogues were held between special guests sharing ideas, including Prof. Luisa Collina, Dean of the School of Design, Politecnico di Milano, Honorary President of Cumulus, and Distinguished Visiting Professor of Tsinghua University, Prof. Daan van Eijk of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, and A/Prof. Liu Lidan of the College of Design and Innovation at Tongji University. A consensus was reached that the pandemic had enabled more interaction among international universities and schools via the Internet, and global cooperation would endow the future design education with more value.

Group photo of guests of the eighth academic exchange session

On the afternoon of June 30th, A/Prof. Mi Haipeng of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design hosted the last session of academic exchange on the theme of "Information, Interaction, Imagination".

Prof. Luc Claesen delivers a speech

Luc Claesen, Professor of the University of Hasselt (Belgium) and Director of Computational Sensing System Group, Dr. Maria Luce Lupetti, Postdoctoral design researcher at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, TU Delft (The Netherlands), A/Prof. Shi Danqing of the Tsinghua Academy of Arts & Design, Dr. Serena Cangian, Head of FabLab SUPSI, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, Dr. Gabriele Ermacora, Postdoctoral researcher of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Founder of the Chinese branch of Hackability, and A/Prof. Mi Haipeng delivered keynote speeches. During the session, Prof. Luc Lcaesen shared the technology and tools of computer simulated drawing that he studies, which provides a more convenient way for public art creation in combination with available technologies and expands future imagination.

A/Prof. Shi Danqing delivers a speech

A/Prof. Mi Haipeng delivers a speech

Group photo of guests and some staff members of the ninth academic exchange session 

At the end of the academic exchange, on behalf of Tsinghua Arts and Design Institute in Milan, Prof. Zang Yingchun thanked all the guests and audience who participated in the academic exchange activities. While congratulating the fruitful achievements of the series of academic exchanges, Prof. Zang also expected that in the face of the current "new challenges", everyone should search for "new strategies" for the future integration of education, art design and technology with goodwill, wisdom and perseverance.

Source: Tsinghua Arts and Design Institute in Milan

Editor: Zhao Ruohan