Welcome aboard to The 18th School of Design Student Association - DIONISIO

Welcome aboard to our 18th Student Association ‘DIONISIO’!  We are excited for the wider range of activities they will organise for students. The new board is formed by a group of enthusiastic and devoted PolyU Design students from years 1 and 2. The members are: President – Potter (Design Foundation year 1) External Vice President – Lily (Design Foundation year 1) Internal Vice President – Hei (Design Foundation year 1) Financial Secretary – Kiki (Service Design year 2) External Secretary – Vivian (Product Experience Design year2) Promotion Secretary – Cathy (Communication Design year 2) Amenities Secretary – Kelly (Service Design year 2) DIONISIO Instagram  

An interview with Outstanding Student Award 2023 winner KWOK Hoi Yan Zoe

It is our greatest pleasure to announce that Miss KWOK Hoi Yan Zoe from our BA(Hons) in Communication Design programme has been selected as a PolyU Outstanding Student for 2023. She is one of 28 winners from different departments, faculties and schools at PolyU. We had an opportunity to interview Zoe to learn about her personal growth story. Let’s dive into her extraordinary journey and discover the secrets behind her exceptional achievements. Q1: How has PolyU Design influenced your approach to design?   PolyU Design has played a significant role in shaping my approach to design. The programme has equipped me with crucial design-thinking skills, enabling me to tackle various situations with fresh perspectives. Collaborating with peers and engaging in meaningful conversations has sharpened my communication abilities. Furthermore, PolyU's extensive facilities, such as the Photography Studio, Print Shop and Production Workshops, have provided me invaluable opportunities to experiment with and explore diverse design production methods. Q2: How do you see design playing an important role in our society? Can you discuss any projects you've been involved in that inspire you on Inclusiveness design? Through my involvement in documenting my neighbourhood and creating prototypes that capture the daily experiences of its citizens, I have witnessed the significant role that design plays in addressing societal challenges and bringing about positive change. One project that particularly stands out is the Integrated Designpreneurship project, which allows students from various disciplines to come together as a group to tackle various social topics as their final-year capstone project. Engaging in discussions with my groupmates has enabled me to learn about design thinking from different perspectives and understand how design shapes our environments, influences our interactions, and even drives social change. This experience has truly inspired me in terms of inclusiveness design. Q3: What characteristics you think an outstanding design student should have? I believe an outstanding design student should possess curiosity, a thirst for knowledge, a questioning mindset, and a genuine concern for society. Driven by curiosity and a desire to learn, I sought diverse design opportunities throughout my studies. This allowed me to experience the transformative power of design and its potential to impact society positively. Q4: Any reflections throughout your years in PolyU Design you could share with us?   Receiving the Outstanding Student Award is a true recognition of my dedication to design studies and a moment of reflection on my university journey. It means a lot to me, particularly as I am in my final year of study.   As I look back on my time at PolyU, I am grateful for the memories and lessons learned that will continue to guide me in the future. The foundation of skills, collaborative spirit, and passion for social impact that I developed during my studies will shape my path and inspire me to effectively utilise design to address pressing social issues in the future. I am excited about the opportunities and the positive impact I can make through design.  

Celebrating Growth & Success with High School Students at the Hatch Programme 2024

As one of the highlights of the PolyU Design Hatch Awards 2024, the Hatch Programme, joined by 60 shortlisted participants has finally come to a finale! Happened from 16 March to 6 April 2024, it is a 4-day incubation training programme that aims to support the budding design interest of the high school students, who have already shown a keen eye on identifying interesting design problems to tackle and their potentials through initial proposals. A series of design lectures, workshops and ideation consultations were conducted to help further unlock the possibilities in their design entries. IDEATION CONSULTATION A team of tutors (Mr Chi-Wing Lee of Milk Design and Mr Kennif Li of Kennifstudio) and senior student ambassadors spent time understanding the works and goals of the participants, thus giving them bespoke advice that best fits their needs. These design clinics were carried out regularly where the team was able to keep track of the progress of each project — a real personalised session. What comes to our surprise is the participants’ enthusiasms to explore further into other areas instead of staying in their own lane, constantly seeking out advice from ambassadors and lecturers of different expertise; the essence of design being applicable in multi-disciplinary! DESIGN LECTURE In order to equip participants with design fundamentals that would serve as a solid base for conducting design strategy in the future, lectures with various focus have been organised. Mr Albert Tsang of J.C.DISI introduced the basics of design thinking through his lecture “From and With: Design and Innovation for Social Impact”, enlightening participants with case studies of radical and inclusive design. In “Generative AI is for Everyone to Solve Problems?”, Mr Eddy Hui of Hong Kong Designers Association gave an extensive introduction on Gen AI, its application tips and reminders. PITCHING EXERCISE To better prepare for the final judging session in July, the students participated at a two-parts pitching exercise where Mr Westley Wong of Wholly Wholly shared an overview on branding and keys to nailing a persuasive pitch, while Mr Thomas Wong, an outstanding alumnus graduated from Communication Design led an intensive hands-on workshop, pushing attendees to build a compact thus intriguing presentation in a short period of time. Hopefully, students will make good use of the presentation skills acquired and apply it in their final presentation and beyond!

Celebrate remarkable achievements of PolyU Design’s alumni in Hong Kong film industry

Pieces of good news are brought from the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards! We are excited to announce that our alumni, Dr Terry Lam (Master of Design - Design Strategies) and Mr Man Lim Chung (BA(Hons) in Design (Graphic Design)) have received awards in the ceremony on 14 April 2024 with their outstanding creative works and contributions to the Hong Kong film industry. Dr Terry Lam The Best Film winner "A Guilty Conscience" " (毒舌大狀) is an acclaimed Hong Kong movie achieved huge box office success, grossing over one billion dollars. Dr Lam is the co-scriptwriter along with Jack Ng and Jay Cheung. The amazing team has also earned a nomination for Best Screenplay in the Awards, and Best Writing at the Golden Rooster Awards. They are winners of Recommended Screenplay Award and the Best Movie Character Award, conferred by the Hong Kong Screenwriter’s Guild in 2023.   Over the years, Dr Lam has been involved in numerous renowned films, including ‘Infernal Affairs 1, 2, 3’ (無間道1, 2, 3), 'Fearless' (霍元甲). He is highly passionate about sharing his extensive knowledge and experiences with aspiring filmmakers and creative young people. He is currently Senior Lecturer (Digital Screen Design) at School of Film and Television in the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Prior to this role, he taught students in our Bachelor's and Master's programmes. Under his mentorship, many amazing film works were created. Mr Man Lim Chung   Mr Man Lim Chung, our 2022 Distinguished Design Alumnus of the Year - Professional Achievement, was awarded Best Costume & Make-Up Design at the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards with the blockbuster ‘The Goldfinger’(金手指) starred by Tony Leung. He is also the winner of Best Costume Design at The 17th Asian Film Awards. Mr Man is an outstanding film production designer, costume director, film director, and filmmaker. During his career in the film industry, he has been the driving force behind numerous award-winning works with his diverse talents, including ‘The Goldfinger’(金手指),  ‘Overheard 3’ (竊聽風雲3). His dedication to filmmaking and various other artistic pursuits across Greater China demonstrate his creative talent and ongoing drive to learn in order to support the success of his passions. Congratulations to Mr. Terry Lam and Ms. Man Nim Chung. We applaud their remarkable success and look forward to witnessing their amazing contribution in the industry.

Call for Nomination: PolyU Design Outstanding Alumni Awards 2024

The PolyU Design Outstanding Alumni Awards aim to give recognition to outstanding graduates of PolyU Design for their professional achievements, active support to their alma mater, as well as impactful contributions to the wider community. Nominations for the PolyU Design Outstanding Alumni Awards 2024 are now invited your submission.   Tentative Nomination and Selection Schedule  Nomination Period: from 12 April 2024 to 5 May 2024 (Deadline: 5 May 2024, 11:59pm HKT) Judging: late May 2024 (Tentative) Result Announcement: June 2024 (Tentative) Award Presentation: June / July 2024 (Tentative) Eligibility  The nominated candidate must be a graduate who has successfully completed full-time or part-time programme offered by PolyU (or its forerunners: Hong Kong Government Trade School, Hong Kong Technical College, and Hong Kong Polytechnic) which led to academic award accredited by the respective Institution.   The proposer can be a PolyU graduate, Honorary Graduate, University Fellow, PolyU staff, current PolyU Council and Court member and current Advisory Committee member.  There is no limit to the number of nominations to be submitted by each proposer.  However, the proposer cannot be the candidate himself/ herself or a direct relative of the candidate.   Award Categories and Selection Criteria  In addition to honouring distinguished graduates for their distinction in their chosen fields, the Award recognises the active support of the alumni towards their alma mater. Support and Contribution to PolyU is one of the key selection criteria at all levels.   Selection is based on the nominee’s accomplishments in his/her personal achievements in the field, contributions to the community, and support and contributions to PolyU. The Outstanding Young Alumni Award is introduced for alumni at/under the age of 40 by the end of the award year.   Award Category Description Professional Achievement This category recognises alumni who have attained distinguished achievements, demonstrated exemplary leadership, and made a strong impact on their profession/ industry/ society. Entrepreneurial  Achievement This category recognises alumni who have demonstrated outstanding innovation and entrepreneurship, as well as founded or advanced business or technology ventures with impact. Scholarly Achievement This category recognises alumni scholars who have made notable scholarly or research contributions in their disciplines, with proven track record and excellent reputation in the field. Community Service Achievement This category recognises alumni who have made impactful contributions to the communities, or demonstrated an extraordinary level of commitment, volunteerism and/or philanthropy for promoting the wellbeing of the communities.     Notes: The bestowal of the award shall subject to individual merits of the candidates.  No award shall be given out in a certain category if no suitable candidate is identified.   Panel of Judges  The Panel of Judges, comprising both internal and external members, will be formed to examine the nominations and assess candidates’ qualifications and performance for the awards.   Confidentiality  All information submitted on this nomination form will be kept strictly confidential and will only be used by the Panel of Judges for the purpose of the selection process.  The candidate will not be contacted by the School of Design until he/she is selected as the awardee of the PolyU Design Outstanding Alumni Awards 2024.   Submission of Nomination  Online nomination form or Word version form   List of the items to prepares  Completed Nomination Form for PolyU Design Outstanding Alumni Awards 2024 (Part I to Part VII) Proposer’s Recommendation, Particulars and Signature (p.10 - 11 of the nomination form) Recent portrait(s) of the candidate with high resolution Candidate’s Portfolio via downloadable drive link (p.10 of the nomination form) Photocopy of certificate(s), award(s) with high resolution Supplementary documents (if any) Enquiries School of Design Email sd.aln@polyu.edu.hk Phone +852 3400 8260

Faculty and School Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2023

Congratulations to our academic staff, who were awarded the Faculty/School Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2023. The award recognises and celebrates the remarkable contributions of staff members in Teaching, Research and Scholarly Activities, Knowledge Transfer, and Services. We are proud to acknowledge their outstanding efforts.   Categories Awardees Teaching Category: Teaching (Outstanding Teacher) Prof. StephenWANG Research and Scholarly Activities Category: Outstanding Researcher Dr Gerhard BRUYNS Knowledge Transfer Category: Knowledge Transfer (Society) Dr Markus WERNLI  

Award-winning poster designs shine at Hong Kong Film Awards

We are excited to announce that our students won top awards at the 42nd 香港電影金像獎 Hong Kong Film Awards Students Poster Design Competition recently.  The proud winners are: Champion: Mok Dick Ka (Advertising Design) 1st Runner-up: Horace Ma (Advertising Design) 2nd Runner-up: Janet Cheng (Communication Design)  The Hong Kong Film Awards, one of the most prestigious film awards in Asia, invites students from major design schools in Hong Kong to participate in the poster design competition every year. The submissions were judged by senior designers and art directors. The awards are not only a recognition of the awardees, but also an affirmation of PolyU’s 60 years of design education and research in Hong Kong. Congratulations to the three awardees! About the winning designs Brief: 永恆一刻   Champion: Mok Dick Ka (Advertising Design) 在演員得到肯定的一刻，往日所有努力和辛酸如走馬燈在腦海中一一重播，演員在鎂光燈照亮下閃閃發光，演員的四周仿猶如飛揚著閃粉星光，世界變得寧靜，周邊環境彷似止於那一瞬，台上的那一刻捉抓緊了最閃爍的光，成為永恆的經典。   1st Runner-up: Horace Ma (Advertising Design) 最美的事物往往在一瞬間閃耀綻放，隨即消逝。然而，我們應該珍惜那些曾經的輝煌與盛放，並深信香港電影中每個經典場景將永遠在我們心中綻放，永恆不朽。 基於這個理念，我的海報設計以花朵作為主要背景中心元素，試圖呈現短暫而美麗的曇花一現。花朵的綻放象徵著生命中最珍貴的時刻。在電影世界中，每個經典場景也如同一朵盛放的花朵，永遠留存在觀眾心靈之中，刻骨銘心，念念不忘。 在整體色調的設計上，我受到了王家衛先生的電影啟發，嘗試渲染絢麗繽紛的色彩，營造出迷幻的感覺。我特別將綠色和藍色融合成為主要背景色調，呈現出一片恍如像無人知曉的浩瀚星空和大海的感覺。透過強烈對比的色彩交融，突顯了電影金像獎永恆一恆的耀眼光輝。這樣的色調也希望喚起人們對王家衛先生電影的回憶，勾起對過去香港電影輝煌時光的記憶。   2nd Runner-up: Janet Cheng (Communication Design)  為了呈現「永恆一刻」，此設計以強烈反差的方式表達電影的本質，帶出香港電影人為觀眾們精確地捕捉每個難以忘懷的瞬間。 海報中央的四個獎座象徵著香港電影金像獎已經來到第四十二屆。前方的金色獎座拿著散發光芒的明珠，代表著這個獎項在香港電影界的崇高地位。邊框上方的句子則展現了我對電影金像獎的理解與感受。 我希望以這海報的喻意，呈現電影帶給觀眾的力量 -  捕捉動人時刻，亦同時觸動人心！ 同時，我也希望透過這作品表達對香港電影金像獎的敬意。

Interdisciplinary Approach to Designing for Inclusivity: PolyU Design and School of Architecture and Design of Harbin Institute of Technology Establish Joint-Research Center

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design (PolyU Design) announced its official partnership with the School of Architecture and Design at Harbin Institute of Technology by signing an Agreement of Establishment for the Joint-Research Center for Inclusive Environment on 12 March 2024.   The establishment of this Joint-Research Center aims to foster the advancement of research, teaching, and practical applications in the field of inclusive environments. It also serves as an interdisciplinary and collaborative academic platform dedicated to inspiring new ideas, creative methods, and influential applications through the exchange, cooperation, and synergy between two institutions.   “The Joint-Research Center is dedicated to becoming a hub of a diverse group of experts and scholars to promote multidimensional and multilevel development,” Prof. Kin Wai Michael Siu of PolyU Design, who is one of the Directors of the Joint-Research Center, looked forward to kicking off the Center’s work including joint research project applications, research endeavours, collaborative teaching, and academic exchange activities, with the collaborator.   While PolyU Design is one of the QS top 20 design schools in the world, Harbin Institute of Technology is known as one of the "Eight Old Schools of Architecture" in Chinese colleges and universities, and one of the most important scientific research bases of human settlements and one of the leaders of human settlements education in China. This collaboration offers a valuable opportunity for meaningful academic interactions between the two institutions, simultaneously making significant contributions to the academic community and society.

International and Local University Counsellors getting up close with PolyU Design

It was a great pleasure for PolyU Design to welcome school counsellors from local and 14 countries in the PolyU Counsellor Fly-in Programme 2024 which happened back in early March. The Programme was a 4-day engagement hosted by the Global Engagement Office to allow the guests to gain a first-hand experience of the top-notch programmes of the University. PolyU Design participated in various activities, grasping at the chance not only to introduce its unique learning culture but also to pick each other's brain, exchanging views on things that can help students gain access to useful resources that enable them to better decide on their future education path. 14 university counsellors coming from 9 countries and regions gathered for an exclusive tour at the iconic landmark of PolyU Design.   On 7 March, 14 university counsellors coming from 9 countries and regions such as British Virgin Islands, India, Kenya, Mongolia, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, United Arab Emirates as well as Hong Kong, gathered at the Jockey Club Innovation Tower, home to PolyU Design for an exclusive tour. Besides having a sneak peek into the making of the 'One To Ten — Outstanding Alumni Exhibition' and a selection of our state-of-the-art facilities, the guests are invited into the second home of our students — the design studios. Visitors checking out the Digital Print Shop, understanding the training and resources offered by the workshop.   Being a rare open house opportunity, they were able to get up close and personal with our ambassadors, walking them through a day in the life of a PolyU Design student. On 8 March, the School also participated at the Mini Fair to keep the conversation going and offering more essential information on the BA (Hons) Scheme in Design curriculum. Student ambassadors walked the guests through their design studios, sharing the inside scoop on the mentorship programme and showing off the prototypes that they have made.   Thank you PolyU GEO are organising yet another successful edition and the high praised received from counsellors of the tour. PolyU Design welcomes further opportunity exploration and take collaborations to the next level, just drop us a message at sdmktg@polyu.edu.hk! PolyU Design at the Mini Fair, counsellors getting to know more about the curriculum and admission essentials.

Innovative partnership: PolyU Design and Ewha Womans University Collaborate on Exploring Spatial Design

PolyU Design and Ewha Womans University signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 26 Feb 2024. The partnership focuses on collaborative research on spatial design with BA Design (Environment and Interior Design) and Master of Design (Transitional Environments Design) Programmes. The collaboration will encompass various aspects of research and learning besides spatial design, the exploration of urban and environmental transitions and regeneration, and designing human environments.   The College of Art and Design at Ewha Womans University is Korea's first and foremost educational institute offering a four-year arts programme. With a rich history, the college is dedicated to nurturing highly creative and expressive professionals in art and design, offering various divisions from Design to Fine Arts and fiber/Fashion.   This partnership presents valuable opportunities to facilitate meaningful exchanges and knowledge sharing between the two institutions.