Taiwan Design Expo in Taichung: Returning to 'Design Essence'

Words and photos by Taichung City
Government
Translated by Naomi Lai

The country's design event of the year--the Taiwan Design Expo--will be held in Taichung in October for the first time and showcase the creative ideas and innovative designs of talent from around the nation. Hosted by the Industrial Development Bureau, Taichung City Government and Headquarters for the Administration of Cultural Heritage, and organized by Taiwan Design Center, the Seventh Taiwan Design Expo will exhibit design works at the Taichung Creative and Cultural Park for 16 days, starting from October 2.

16-day exhibition in Taichung for the first time
The popular Taiwan Design Expo, now in its seventh year, has been held in places like Taipei, Yilan, Kaohsiung and Tainan, and has seen a record high of 380,000 visitors in one 16-day period. Every year the expo highlights new themes relating to current social trends, such as "Design and Life" at the first expo, "Food Art" at the second, "Finding New Asia" at the third, and this year's "Design Essence".

Eight pavilions focus on the origin of design
In the setting of a financial crisis, global warming and energy crisis, this year's Taiwan Design Expo will be all about "Essence". The Taiwan Design Center hopes that by reflecting on the origins of design, it can return design to its roots and away from over-packaged modernity. The center aims to take designers back to the basics, to the essence of design, in order to meet needs, solve problems and touch hearts.

This year's expo will include eight pavilons:
1) The Theme Pavilion, inviting designers to present their interpretations of "Design Essence" under this year's theme of "Trace Back to Design Essence".
2) Golden Pin Design Pavilion, expressing modern aesthetics through classic design pieces under five design directions of "For Working", "For Living", "For Gathering", "For Decoration" and "For Honor".
3) Designers Imagination Pavilion, located within a historic, five-building compound, is filled with creative designers, aboriginal arts, and nominated and winning works from the Taiwan International Design Competition.
4) International Design Pavilion, continuing the ideas from last year's "Universal Design Pavilion", will still showcase the newest, hippiest universal designs with works from the U.S., U.K., Germany, Netherlands, France and Japan.
5) Taichung International Architecture Aesthetics Pavilion--Taichung is known as the "cultural city" of Taiwan. During Mayor Jason Hu's time in office, he has advocated for a more "Creative, Active, Cultural" Taichung. Besides holding various cultural events, he has also planned out the creation of various cultural exhibition grounds, including the Taichung New City Hall, WenXin Forest Park and Amphitheater, Taichung Metropolitan Opera House, Taichung Guggenheim Museum, and Shui Nan Trade Park. All these major Taichung construction projects will be displayed at the Taichung International Architecture Aestehtics Pavilion. Other than the architectural models, there will also be a multi-media presentation of the process, planning and ideals behind the architecture.
6) Taichung Environmental Creative Art Pavilion--Taichung has been eagerly promoting recycling for years. This pavilion will showcase environmental designers' creative ideas, combining recycled materials with art for infinite possibilities. There will also be family-based do-it-yourself activities to bring everyone into the environmentally-creative art world.
7) Creative Design Plaza--Don't know where to get your "Made In Taiwan" creative art? The Creative Design Plaza offers just that. It will satisfy your shoppping urges and help you support Taiwanese designers by providing you with the latest local designs and trends.
8) Taichung Creative Design Craft Exhibition--Want to see some interesting craft designs? This exhibition showcases detailed engineering components, such as car parts, musical instrument parts and more. Visitors can also look into the design process for these creative ideas.

Taiwan Design Expo Information:
Time/Place: October 2-18, at Taiwan Architecture, Design and Art Center (362, FuXing Road, Sec 3)
(04) 2229-5848
Website: http://designexpo.boco.com.tw