yii design gijs bakker presents taiwanese crafts at asia now

image © designboom

the pieces on show within the taiwanese sector in designboom’s ‘asia now‘ exhibition at dwell on design in los angeles, ranged from bamboo work and woodcarving, to ceramic and lacquer ware. the local designers, merely educated on western principles, have been challenged to cultivate a greater appreciation of the increasingly extinct crafts of the country, encouraged to adopt ‘green’ manufacturing methods, which can assure sustainability, high quality production and an authenticity of products, ultimately bringing the extraordinary to the immensely impersonal modern environment.

traditional taiwanese crafts originate from the principles of buddhism and taoism, which have enriched the culture of the country with numerous legends and symbols. all exhibited products are made with a close attention to detail. every single one of them carries a unique story (ie. you cannot depict a dragon with a lowered head, because it’s a symbol of fortune) also on display, there have been a few “ready-mades” – cheap ikea furniture which start a new life as a one-off masterpiece.

yii the taiwan craft research institute (an agency under the council for cultural affairs of the taiwanese government) conceived. ‘yii’, a new initiative, which aims to stimulate a creative dialogue between local designers and craftsmen, seeking greater international exchanges related to crafts. yii – reads like [i] – derived from ‘yi’, which in taiwanese philosophy means ‘change and transformation’. dutch designer and co-founder of droog, gijs bakker is the creative director.

‘brick’ tray
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brick tray and vases
designer: rock wang / craft artist: pei-ze chen

brick is one of the symbols of taiwanese culture, influenced by the dutch and their colonization of the asian country during the 17th century. each of the pieces is created by carving out of a block of the industrial building material, achieved through an industrial technique.

‘brick’ vases

‘brick’ tray
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‘brick’ tray, ‘brick’ vase and ‘lace’ bowls
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lace bowls
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lace bowls
designer: ching-ting hsu / craft artist: tsun-jen lee
oriental embroidery pattern meets western elegance. these porcelain vessels express a wedding blessing that chinese mothers give to their daughters. when light hits the surface, the lace pattern details come through.

‘lace’ bowl

‘frog’ (bamboo carving), ‘shadow orchid’ (silver, ceramic) and ‘silver dragon’ (silver and gold plated)
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world cups
designed by idee liu, in collaboration with various craft artists. they take the global starbucks symbol and combine it with traditional taiwanese crafts such as woodcarving, koji pottery, glassblowing and silversmithing.

‘beetle’ (woodcarving)

this wooden world cup is designed and produced by idee liu with craft artist ching-tian cai.

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‘panlong’ vases
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panlong vase
designer: chen-hsu liu / craft artist: shi-ren lu
this series of vases is made using traditional koji pottery and ceramic techniques. they are decorated by classical mascot figures of taiwanese temples – dragons and tigers. these ancient icons have been combined with a computer designed, geometric polygonal shaped vase, which plays the ‘contemporary’ role in this piece.

‘panlong’ vase

‘panlong’ vase
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‘panlong’ vases and ‘rabbit’ cups and plate
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rabbit cup
designer: hsiao-ying lin / craft artist: jun-ching tang
made from black clay, these tableware pieces interpret the famous chinese fairytale of the rabbit on the moon, commemorated every autumn in taiwan during the moon festival celebrations. the rabbit sips the water within along the lip of the vessel; a rabbit is found sitting on the edge of a plate – its stretched ‘reflection’ becoming the dish itself.

‘rabbit’ cup

‘IKEA plus tertial’
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IKEA plus tertial
designer: pili wu / craft artist: an-fu huang
this IKEA lampshade is given a transparent silver and gold plated cover containing a pattern within – portraying a mythical battlefield of tigers and dragons – all brought to life as if in a fairy inferno, when the light is switched on. this typical desk light’s plain bulb has been transformed into a mysterious fireball.

IKEA plus tertial light
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detail of the IKEA plus tertial light
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IKEA plus 365+ vase
designer: pili wu / craft artist: an-fu huang
an average water glass turns into a vase by adding a glass top with traditional dragon motif.

cocoon sofa
designer: rock wang / craft artist: kao-ming chen
the cocoon is constructed by intertwining bamboo strips. the smooth, silky surface of this object is the natural result of the silkworm cocooning process.

‘bambool’ barstool

bambool barstool
designer: yu-jui chou / craft artist: su-jen su
three bamboo trunks have been split at the top and woven, with small bamboo strips, into a seat.

de-chan han was in charge of the yii projects on behalf of the taiwan craft research institute. he came to los angeles to represent the various yii projects and lend us a helping hand during the show.