Jimmy Chang is known for a career-long fascination with themes surrounding industrial transformation and upgrading (in the design fields), especially the application of innovative thinking on traditional industries. With the commitment to integrate Taiwan’s design spirit and city marketing, he has taken an active part in cultural and creative orientation for cities, as well as the relevant researches.

The journey from product design to industrial design

Born in Taiwan, Taichung, 1976, I begin my design creation very earlier, along with the solid foundation academically from Design and Arts, Mingdao High School, the Department of Industrial Design at Chaoyang University of Technology and Department of Industrial Design Shih Chien University. The various design awards I won during my study earned me the title of “Bonus hunter” from Taiwanese media. I well established myself in the design field for creative amusement philosophy, and this style can be seen in my design, which is approachable and full of childlike happiness. As the founder of the UID Create since 2002, I have provided traditional industries design services, such us branding and innovative product R&D. My designs have been recognized internationally, including the iF Design Award, the Red Dot Award and Taiwan’s Golden Pin Design Award. In 2009, myself-created brand “Lucky rice” was garlanded with awards. In addition to the accomplishments overseas (i.e. the iF Design Award, the Red Dot Award), “Lucky rice” received the national-level honor for consecutive two years - Taiwan OTOP Design Awards, which made me become the first designer (in history) to win two Cultural & Creative Awards from the Ministry of Culture in the same year. Moreover, “Lucky rice” was invited to international fairs (like NY NOW, ASD Trade Show, Maison & Objet Paris, GIFTEX, ICIF - both Beijing and Shenzhen, LUXE HOME Shanghai, Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair) and made brilliant sales achievements. With “The promotion project for living aesthetics” officially supported by the Ministry of Culture in 2009, I launched exhibition tour “Love‧Tomorrow Today” to convey the importance of green design, where international designers in work camp tried to influence consumer’s usage style by using eco-friendly materials. In 2011, this tour was awarded with “Special Award for Green Living Industry” by Xue Xue Foundation.

Placemaking - an unexpected harvest resulted from urban design

The urban writer Jane Jacob said “Innovations make cities great.” A great city is supposed to solve its own problems by spawning many creative ideas and innovations. For designers, creativity and innovation are reflected on design. Therefore, the issues “how to repack and transform city image” and “how to build a platform and mechanism for more locals’ involvement” are the directions being considered. The urban development is a job by which more positive feedbacks are triggered from one type to another. This is the possibilities I expect to see through design; that is to say, change, creativity and innovative development.

If you look at the projects UID Create joined in recent years, it quickly becomes clear that placemaking and urban marketing are our primary focuses. The two projects “Tainan - Love City” and “Keelung Port 130th anniversary” for instance, they all centered on urban marketing and local reinvention. Both Tainan and Keelung show historical and cultural significance. I think the former best represents the Taiwan’s history from 400 to 200 years ago; while the latter explains 200 years ago to modern history. The early place name of Tainan’s Anping is “Dayuan”, whose Minnan pronunciation sounds like Taiwan. As for Keelung, with its upgrade to formal port from the earlier secondary port of Danshui port, it explains the Taiwan’s historical evolution to some extent. The pronunciation of “tsiànn-káng” in Taiwanese actually refers to Keelung.

The concept of “Tainan - Love City” derived from the tradition on the Double Seventh Festival - “Pray Zhi Nu, the weaving maiden for needlecraft skills” and “Coming-of-sixteen Ceremony”. I hope the people could know the true meaning connotation behind this festival. Therefore, I adopted “love” as the theme for the whole activity, reminding people of the close relationship between Tainan and the legend of romance (i.e. legend of the Cowherd and the Weaving Maid). This activity used to be one day only, but the longer duration now collects more love-themed arts at the tourist attractions spots. Now in its 5th year, the activity has become one of famous cultural celebrations, with even boarder expansion in area and citizen. 

The “Design station” project for World Design Capital Taipei 2016

Last year, the project “Design station” we organized was selected as one of important promotion case for the WDC Taipei 2016. We selected two important transportation sites to represent Taipei and Taiwan’s traffic gateways, namely Taipei MRT and Taoyuan international airport. The issue “how to make people feel the status of Taipei’s design energy” is the topic we brainstormed. Given that Taipei MRT is the most intensive traffic hubs for citizens’ daily transportation, any tiny changes (i.e. MRT stations, train carriage, and warning signs) can deepen people’s impression on Taipei’s design energy. As for international tourists, the airport is their first impression towards Taiwan, and baggage carousel certainly becomes the ideal display field since they must wait for the luggage there. This project posed a big challenge, including closer coordination between private and public sectors. The Department of Cultural Affairs, in the project of transformational design at MRT station, must proceed operation across departments – be it its internal units or Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation; meanwhile, it also coordinated with airlines for the airport design. From the change of administrative procedure, we can see the role of government transformed towards a flexible integrator.

   

The 2017 Taipei Lantern Festival is not just watching lanterns but an interactive entertainment

UID Create also undertook planning and design of lantern areas at the 2017 Taipei Lantern Festival. Our designs for Painted Egg Area and Magic Animal Egg Area match the chief planner’s theme “Lanterns can be something different and out of the box.” When the display area moved to Ximending, we adjusted the lantern presentation to brightly-lit streets around. Visitors used to center on the main lantern, but the biggest change now is that people are surrounded by lanterns, and even allowed to enter inside lanterns for more interactions.

Compared to the other design company, UID Create took many government projects, during which we generated creative ideas about how to conduct the mutual cooperation. Many designers refuse to joined government projects, but if no one takes it, public sector will not change. Instead of confronting outside of the system, why not undertake revolutionary tasks inside? I prefer to make changes internally based on administrative process. What I expect is far more than the result, but an influence on official style and existing thinking. Over the years, we indeed saw the change occurred in the public sector. UID Create hopes to create intangible value which might not bring immediate benefit in the short term, but it is integral to city’s sustainable management.

The design breadth shapes the system of cities

Unlike the long-established design concept, it is now extended to boarder scope like “service design” and “experience design”, instead of just a product design such as package, Logo and poster design. The design on a single product generates smaller economic benefits, however great achievement can be made if design thinking is introduced into every level. When people begin incorporating design thinking in the city, we actually establish a mechanism and system to make a better life for ourselves. This design thinking is also the core value UID Create always insists, and I hope my company can innovate consistently and try to make new breakthroughs by the original spirit of Unique Idea.