Mission

The Asian Lifestyle Design Research lab provides research service to and generates critical knowledge for designers and industries creating innovative, sustainable products and services for the Asian lifestyle. To further this, it also engages in fundamental and historical research, develops appropriate methodologies for fieldwork and analysis, and seeks collaborations with industrial and academic partners. 

Objectives

The Asian Lifestyle Design Research lab undertakes both broad and focused people-centric and user-centred research that explores those trends that have relevance to design-driven businesses serving Asian contexts, and it investigates the social, cultural, historical and environmental drivers of lifestyle change. In collaboration with industrial and academic partners, it directs specific projects that seek to understand circumstances where appropriate, sustainable products and services can be developed. The lab is especially active in context scanning and ethnographic studies of everyday experience in urban China. Its current emphases are middle-class consumption, sustainable lifestyle, sustainable micro-production, related design research tools, and Chinese traditions of design thinking/ making. The lab is also involved with the establishment of supportive networks such as LSDER-China for fieldwork and analysis. 

Sample/ Research Project

Chopsticks

One of the recent projects of the lab has been a collaborative research called ‘Chopsticks’ that has explored the design implications of regional food preparation practices. One of its starting points was the insight that many aspects of daily Asian life have not been fully considered by designers and manufacturers of ‘modern’ goods. The study involved observation and other fieldwork research, as well as workshops for researchers. Our partners in this were the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Department of Industrial Design) Korea; Tsinghua University (Industrial Design Department of Academy of Arts and Design) China; Tsukuba University (Institute of Art and Design) Japan. Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Ltd, Hong Kong, provided sponsorship.

Related Event

I.do Workshop

An annual event organized to encourage international and multidisciplinary design collaboration in, with and for local communities and to gain unique learning experiences. Through new cultural design methods, network with designers from around the world, the workshop participants are enable to create fresh new design solutions for sustainable product development for indigenous communities.

In 2006, four groups of international business and design students participated in the I.do summer workshop and worked cooperatively to develop product designs and economic models for sustainable social development in ethnic minority communities in the Yunnan province in China. In 2007, participants worked together to bring new concepts and designs for "Hotel Room of the Future" varying from 3-star hotel room, 4-star urban hotel room, 5-star city centre hotel room, to 5-star resort villa for Asian market.

Tel: (852) 2766 5458

Email: sdbenny@polyu.edu.hk

Contact Person: Benny Ding Leong