Spencer Hung tells us how the art of making, and of trying and testing, helps designers find problems – and therefore solutions.
Spencer Hung believes in the value of doing. “Only through doing can you find out what’s wrong with something,” says Hung, Design Manager at JIA Inc., the Taiwan- and Hong Kong-based home- and kitchen-ware brand. “If you only work on computers, you’re never going to find out what’s wrong with things You’ll just be making cosmetic changes.”
At JIA Inc., Chinese culture is the foundation of their designs, infused with Eastern and Western ideas, and both the old and the new. For the brand, ‘doing’ is a vital part of the designing process: for it’s only by cooking, by testing tools and by using them themselves that they will understand where the problems lie.
“Designers are great at solving problems, but not all of them are great at finding the problem in the first place. I think finding the problem is the first step,” explains Hung.
Perhaps it’s this attitude that has seen JIA Inc. repeatedly gain recognition at the Golden Pin Design Award over the past few years. The Golden Pin Design Award was established in Taiwan and it celebrates designs created with Chinese-speaking communities in mind. The annual award covers product design, visual communication, spatial design and packaging, and this year, the Design Award judging panel was chaired by Oki Sato, Founder of Japanese design studio nendo.
At the 2016 awards, JIA Inc. won a Golden Pin Design Award for The Prep, Rolling Mortar, a modern take on the ancient mortar and pestle. Inspired by ceramic tea mortars from the Tang Dynasty, this ceramic pestle and oak mortar is designed to be extra-efficient at grinding spices, Chinese medicines, tea leaves and more, using a rolling motion rather than the traditional bashing and beating technique used with mortar and pestles.
Another modern take on a traditional Chinese cooking product is JIA Inc.’s Steamer. The Steamer’s terracotta base – which replaces the usual bamboo steamer base – absorbs excess liquid, ensuring dishes have just the right moisture balance when they’re done.
“Terracotta has existed for a long time, but with the Steamer, we found new meaning for it, and this has changed the way we look at steamers,” says Hung.
The Steamer received a Golden Pin Design Mark in 2010, and its careful balance of old and new contributed to this just as much as its problem-solving efforts. And this is something JIA Inc. does so well; this marriage of the traditional and the modern.
“It’s a struggle every day to find the right balance,” says Hung. Luckily, however, the brand works with experts in Chinese history, and with master chefs, and tea and coffee masters, to achieve that balance and get the facts just right. “A lot of our design is about a real collaborative process, much more so than other brands,” he adds. “One thing we always do is go back to our departure point. We constantly ask the question, ‘Why are we doing this?’”
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
Create a configuration to suit your needs with this curved collection.
Sub-Zero and Wolf’s prestigious Kitchen Design Contest (KDC) has celebrated the very best in kitchen innovation and aesthetics for three decades now. Recognising premier kitchen design professionals from around the globe, the KDC facilitates innovation, style and functionality that pushes boundaries.
In the pursuit of an uplifting synergy between the inner world and the surrounding environment, internationally acclaimed Interior Architect and Designer Lorena Gaxiola transform the vibration of the auspicious number ‘8’ into mesmerising artistry alongside the Feltex design team, brought to you by GH Commercial.
Channelling the enchanting ambience of the Caffè Greco in Rome, Budapest’s historic Gerbeaud, and Grossi Florentino in Melbourne, Ross Didier’s new collection evokes the designer’s affinity for café experience, while delivering refined seating for contemporary hospitality interiors.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
The Australian Design Centre (ADC) this year celebrates 60 years! A series of events are coming up to mark the occasion.
The official launch of the 2024 WA Architect Awards opens today – Wednesday 1st May – with the opening of the AIA WA Awards Exhibition.