INTERCULTURAL DESIGN / TASK 1-3
╎Week 1 - Week 7
╎Gwendalyn Firly Bong / 0374580
╎Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Lectures
II.Instructions
III. Tasks
IV. Reflection
II. LECTURES
- As designers, we need to be able to understand and express both
- Designers need to be aware of cultural nuances, symbolism, and context to create designs that are inclusive and resonate with diverse audiences
- We live in a visual information culture
- Visuals are powerful persuasive medium to provide most of our information about the world
![]() |
Figure 1.1: How images can help us understand data |
- Visuals are:
- Everything that can be seen - works for everything including nature, but nature is not culture unless there is meaning attached to it
- Everything produced or created by humans that can be seen
- We need to identify the social, cultural, and political spheres where the design elements exist
- Through understanding the cultures, philosophy, sociology, and history
![]() |
Figure 1.2: The Design System |
![]() |
Figure 1.3: The Design System |
- Symbolism and Imagery
- Certain symbols and images may carry different meanings in different cultures
- Designers should avoid potential misinterpretations and offense
- Color Considerations
- Colors can have cultural significance, and their colors vary across societies
- Typography and Language
- Fonts and text styles that are culturally appropriate are important
- Considering language variations and accurate translations is important for reaching diverse audiences
- Inclusive Design
- Designers should create products and experiences that are accessible and inclusive for people from various cultural backgrounds
- User Research
- Proper research including ethnographic studies and user testing across diverse groups helps designers gain insights into different preferences and behaviors
- Localization
- Adapting designs to specific cultural contexts through localization can enhance the relevance and acceptance
- Cultural Awareness Training
- Design teams can benefit from proper training to develop a deeper understanding of different perspectives and sensitivities
II. INSTRUCTIONS
III. TASKS
Research and Ideation
- Global fashion trends that blend cultural heritage into modern clothing
- Local brands that do similar design which includes cultural design
- Cultural textile research
- Malay, Chinese, and Indian communities
- Fashion design lecturer
- Taylor's students
- Foreigners
-
Visit places related to Malay, Chinese, and Indian heritage (e.g. National Textile Museum, Pasar Seni, Petaling Street, Masjid India)
-
Observe traditional clothing, motifs, and fabric patterns associated with each culture
-
Document key colors, textures, and embroidery styles
- Research about jeans
- Making of the patchwork jeans
- A short attention-grabbing video that hooks viewers, showcasing who we are and why they should follow our content
- A brief explanation of how we studied each culture, selected symbolic patterns from each, and combined them to create jeans designed for everyday wear for everyone.
- A brief explanation of Malaysia as a multicultural country and our mission to promote peace among its three main races.
-
Interview 3 students around campus for their thoughts on “unity in
malaysia”
- A vlog on our experience going to the National Textile Museum and fabric shopping
- Showcasing the process of making the jeans
-
Showcasing the process of making the jeans + reveal of final product
- Final interview collecting the thoughts students have on our jeans + concept, to see if we acheived our goal.
-
A short showcase featuring our group members wearing the jeans
- An interview-based reflection amongst our team to gain insight on our final thoughts of the journey.
IV. FEEDBACK
Week 1 (7/2/25)
General Feedback : An introduction to our module and task, where we were introduced to our lecturers and everyday designs, and had form a group with peers to start researching and
ideating for Task 1.
Week 2 (13/2/25)
General Feedback : To continue researching and ideating, and to create our powerpoint presentations for submission on week 3.
Specific Feedback : Idea to focus on the 3 cultures of Malaysia and to unite them was accepted, however being advised to try not be stereotypical.
Week 3 (21/2/25)
General Feedback : Finish research and slides to move on to recording a presentation on zoom for submission, where we must compile the slides and presentation in a google file.
Specific Feedback : Instead on focusing on 3 different objects, focus on 1 and create 3 designs from there (jeans), as well as make their designs stand out to emphasis your point; focus on the meaning and way we design to emphasis unity.
________
Week 4 (27/2/25)
General Feedback : No lecture / consultation to focus on Task 2 data collection, however we discussed with Dr Charles over teams to get reassurance / directions for questions / topics we were going to research about to start task 2.
________
Week 5 (5/3/25)
General Feedback : Complete Task 2 research / presentation.
________
Week 6 (12/3/25) & Week 7 (19/3/25)
General Feedback : No classes for Week 6 & 7 - Time taken to complete Task 3 & presentation.
V. REFLECTION
Experience
This module was filled with many ups and downs for me personally. Since we were told to team up with random people, it was quite difficult to communicate with some of the members and it was quite awkward. as we progressed with the project, it got much easier to talk to each other and we were able to finish the tasks together.
Observation
One of the tasks in this module is data collection. Me and my group members decided to explore several places around our area to learn more about the traditional textiles. this allowed me to heighten my observation skills as I had to pay attention to each detail the textiles and fabrics had
Findings
Through this module, I was able to learn so much more about malaysia’s diverse culture and their traditions. I was able to do lots of research on their traditional clothing, food, fabrics and many more!
Comments
Post a Comment