2019 iSee Design – iSee Design

Integrating Design Resources- Global Design Organizations Collaborating to Spark Innovation

The Foundations persist in the development of the exquisite service industry and to exercise Taiwan’s soft power, while also taking note of the fact that design is a critical link in the exquisite service chain. In 2015, the Foundations created the Global Talent Design Festival, a world-class celebration of design, which gathered together global experts and students from around the world. The Foundations’ joint efforts resulted in the creation of the world’s largest student design competition. Based on this successful experience, iSee Design was established to support the development of design talent, and realize design value in industry. This effort to connect design talent, industry, and organizations, has enabled the platform to leverage global design resource networks to enhance design innovation.

First row, left to right – Mariana Amatullo, Cumulus President; Don Chen, iSee Taiwan Foundation CEO; Audrey Yang, iSee Taiwan Foundation Vice Chairman; Ted Wen, iSee Taiwan Foundation Chairman; Teresa Lin, Sayling Wen Cultural & Education Foundation CEO, Prof. Apex Lin, TISDC (Taiwan International Student Design Competition) Project Director; Mugendi K. M’Rithaa, President Emeritus and Conference Convener of the WDO. (Photo taken on December 5th, 2019.)

For the October, 2019 iSee Design Workshop and December, 2019’s iSee Design Forum【From Local to Global】, representatives from 21 global design organizations, including BEDA (the Bureau of European Design Associations), Cumulus (the International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media), and WDO (the World Design Organization), sparked conversation and discussion, about how to support design talent, global connections, as well as creating new value and opportunities for the design industry. The events held in Taiwan have now become a staple on the design world’s calendar.

Exquisite Service – Integrating Design Energy and Presenting Taiwan’s Unique Culture

The dual missions of the iSee Taiwan Foundation are to successfully market Taiwan’s unique character to reach out globally and to make the world Taiwan’s service market. The Foundation focuses on exploring, integrating, and promoting the culture and friendly nature of people and places throughout Taiwan, with the goal of creating more opportunities for Taiwan’s service industry by steadily increasing the number of inbound visitors from abroad. To achieve these missions, the Foundation continues working to construct a world stage for Taiwan’s design talent, and to display the characteristics and culture of Taiwan to the world. As a result, for iSee Design’s events in October and December 2019, a brand-new cultural feast was planned. Transforming Taiwan’s unique features into cultural experiences, these in-turn were presented to the representatives from the prestigious design organizations.

iSee Design Culture Tour in October【Modernity × Design】 was led by Prof. Liou Shuenn-Ren of National Cheng Kung University. The tour started at Dharma Drum Mountain’s Nung Chan Monastery in Beitou, which integrates architectural style and religious meaning to robustly demonstrate the spirit of contemporary art. This was closely followed by architect Li Chin-Wei’s talk on Taiwan’s first green library, the Beitou Branch of the Taipei Public Library. A 1930s feast of Taiwanese delicacies then followed at the Michelin stared Mountain and Sea House, the purveyors of Taiwanese food culture drew the October event to a wonderful close.

The iSee Design Culture Tour【Art x Design】, which was held in December, used artistic cultural aspects such as traditional ink painting to help all attendees experiences the gentle, diverse beauty of Taiwan. Taiwanese master of traditional ink painting Lee Chen-Ming personally guided participants in how to use ink brushes and experience the rhythms of pen and ink wash on paper.

The iSee Design Gala Dinner【The YuanHe Banquet】, held in December, was full of culinary delights, and was so named because it symbolized iSee Design’s “first (yuan) year”. The Feast included interaction among global design leaders, cultural attachés, government, and international official representatives to Taiwan. The Gala was an expression of Taiwanese Tastes, which helped all the guests experience a diversely energetic, splendidly innovative mix of Taiwan’s culture, customs, aromas, culinary prowess, and technical skill. It was a truly exquisite, elegant, unique Taiwanese feast for the senses!