In 2012, Chair professor Lin Pansong from the Department of Visual Communication Design brought to Asia University two MOE’s projects: “Award Incentive Program for Encouraging University / College Students to Participate in International Art and Design Contests-Project IDC” and “Taiwan Design Competition for International Students”.. For the past nine years, Asia University has gained fame and influence in the international design communities by holding “The Power of Asian Design” exhibition and competition for eight consecutive years and cultivated numerous talented student designers internationally.
Project IDC, according to Professor Lin, aims to encourage Taiwan students to participate in the international design competitions such as IF, Red Dot and ADC in the hope that Taiwan can find a place in the world design arena. The second project, “Taiwan Design Competition for International Students,” has attracted more than twenty thousand students from 74 countries this year to join the exhibition, which exceeds Red Dot and IF in terms of the number of contestants.
The Taiwan government encourages college students to attend all forms of international design competitions, and provides scholarship and other financial assistance to help talented students to study abroad. In 2020, AU students performed well in these two projects. For instance, Ms. Chia Hsuan Lin, from the Department of Visual Communication Design, was selected by the MOE’s “Art and Design Talent Development Plan” and granted with NTD. 1,500,000 to study in l’École de l’image, Gobelins, in France, for one year. In 2017, Ms. Cai Lin You, from the International Degree Program of Design, was awarded with a scholarship of NTD. 1,000,000 to study in Swinburne University of Technology, Australia.
AU students of design receive strong support from the university and are educated by many experienced professors. Students are encouraged to attend international design competitions. For instance, Red Dot Design Award just announced its 2021 winners. AU students won 11 prizes, including 6 awards in the category of Brand Design & Identity, 3 works in Packaging category, 1 piece in the category of Interface & User Experience Design and another one in the category of Film & Animation.
Among these awards, the work of “Grand Position” by six AU students, namely Chi Chun Ma, Chia Yi Chen, Shao An Lee, Chien Ting Lee, Jia Wen Zheng, Mu Hsien Lin, derives its concept from Chinese Taoist cultural practice which promotes correct positions of our bodies in sitting, walking and other actions. For its clear visual images, “Grand Position” has already won three design awards in Germany, Taiwan and USA respectively.
Another piece of APP design entitled “Oh My Scooter, Taiwan Only” by Jo Yin Yu, Yi Cheng Wang, Rung Tsai Chang, Hao Hsiang Shih, Yi Hsuan Liao and Ting Yu Chen from the Department of Visual Communication Design also attracts a great deal of attention in its unique way of presenting the scooter culture in Taiwan. This APP design can keep the driving records and remind the driver of the daily oil prices, the availability of parking space, navigation, and even a video game which provides practical information of where to eat, shop and visit in Taiwan. It was awarded with the bronze medal of Mobile Application competition held by Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs last year.
Other award winning works include “Excuse Me,” “Talk about Rice,” “Heartbroken Noodles,” “Zheng Yue Qu,” “Football-Obsessed Dubai,” “Loverat,” “Wealth of Mud Medals,” and “Twixt: Catalyst Reaction.” They also show AU students’ creativity and ambition in committing themselves to the study of design.
Professor Hsin Hung Lin, head of the Creative Product Design Department, says that he is grateful for the university’s support in sending students to attend the competitions. Most students learn a great deal from the preparation for the competition and they later become more confident and have clearer vision for their future career as a designer.
