2020
Into the Mountains
Our Dialogue with Taiwan's Mountain
NCKU Industrial Design Bachelor Graduation Thesis
About 70% of Taiwan is covered with rugged, densely forested mountains. However, not many people have been to the mountains or know what it looks like. This year, we transformed what we experienced visually, physically, and emotionally during our hikes into an art exhibition that led our audiences into the mountains with us.
Background
Sense of Land Identity
What is the value of Taiwan? With a history of 400 years, Taiwan has experienced the influence of different ethnicities from abroad, encompassing various aspects including culture, politics, art, and more, making Taiwan a highly diverse land. Yet, this diversity also leads people living here to have different interpretations of their sense of identity and belonging to Taiwan.
However, Taiwan’s natural scenery stands in the most neutral position. It does not belong to any past ruling or colonizing ethnicity; it belongs to the Taiwanese people living in the present. It is the land we live on, a place that nurtures our growth. Regardless of whether one is a native Taiwanese, a mainland Chinese immigrant, or an indigenous person, regardless of one’s political stance, we should all be moved by this land of great beauty and love.
Project Goal
We want to promote the beauty of Taiwan’s landscape to all people to enhance citizen’s sense of recognition to this place.
Records of Taiwan’s Mountains
We recorded footage of this land as many as we could since the beginning of this project. Formats including photos, video, text description, and sound are used on different occasions. During the year, we walked through dozen of mountain areas from a short hiking trail in our city to the highest peak in Taiwan – Jade Mountain. The hiking experience is not only the greatest source of ideas but also a lesson for us to understand our land more.
Experience Design Iteration
What elements should we implement to build up the experience?
We analyzed and broke down all details we experienced through every hiking journey then brainstorm. After that, we chose or combined ideas into a more practical installation that stuck to the theme.
Agile Prototyping & Test
To speed up the preparation of each installation prototype, we used accessible materials such as cardboard, projectors, humidifiers, and light tube to simulate the outcome of our idea, then selected installations that can be easily understood by subjects.
Prototype Collection Video
Insight: Mood Alteration
From 'Sense of Unknown' to 'Awe-inspiring'
From 'Suppress' to 'Liberated'
During the research process, we discovered that people experience strong emotions ranging from a sense of awe towards mountains to the awe-inspiring sensations provided by nature. Furthermore, the transition from the oppressive atmosphere of the city to the freedom found in the mountains is one of the main reasons why people are drawn to venture into the wilderness.
We began to search the ideal place for exhibiting. After visiting multiple sites from North to South Taiwan, we decided to exhibit in our uni campus due to our time and budget limit, also because of reducing the risk of cancellation during COVID-19.
- Future Venue in NCKU, Tainan, Taiwan
- 10/May/2020 - 12/May/2020
Visual Art of Exhibition Poster
The visual element displays the dignity of mountains, a sense of mystery and technology just match the spirit of this exhibition. The golden contour highlights the ridge of Jade Mt. and the high color contrast reflects the majesty of mountains.
Final Outcome
The Overwhelming City
Media: Sound, Light Installation, Wire
At first, the audience will be in a completely white space with lots of light tubes. The lights are turned on and off, echoing the chaotic noise in the space. We want to represent the congested and restrictive feelings of the city. People are stressed, constrained and worn out by living in cities.
At the end of this section, a rock sits in the path, which is a symbol of the starting point of a hiking trail, which is then followed by a dark tunnel. These two elements simultaneously trigger curiosity, excitement, and fear.
Outside the Concrete Box
Media: Video, Projector, Tracing Paper, Cement
After entering this section, the audience will be enveloped in darkness, although some thin rays of light shine along the way. A crack along part of the ceiling reveals clouds floating through the sky, leading the audience to the next section. ‹Outside the Concrete Box> depicts Taiwan’s beautiful natural scenery that surrounds its cities. It reminds us that we don’t need to limit ourselves within the confines of man-made cities, but rather we should explore the extraordinary nature beyond.At the end of this section, a rock sits in the path, which is a symbol of the starting point of a hiking trail, which is then followed by a dark tunnel. These two elements simultaneously trigger curiosity, excitement, and fear.
Just Before Dawn
Media: LED, Aluminum Wire, 3D Printing, Arduino
In this section, the audiences will continue on through a completely dark corridor that is lit only by ambient lights on branches emerging from the two sides. We want to simulate the time when hikers climb up to the peak very early in the morning. The sense of sight is constrained and the path is narrow.
A mixed sense of danger and excitement is triggered. When audiences move further in this section, a view of the contour of the mountains is then revealed, representing both the time and the height that one has reached. We want to convey that the aesthetics of mountains lies in not only the fascinating views people can see but also in the vast array of emotions people experience along the way.
Shape of The Mountains
Media: Chiffon, Painting, Video
This is the final part of the exhibition. Audiences will walk through twenty pieces of semi-transparent curtains that have the shape of Taiwan’s mountains, indicating that they are now fully surrounded by mountains. Afterwards, the video of our hiking trips together with clips of aerial videography from other Taiwanese videographers is displayed. We created a relaxing space where people can sit down to enjoy the beauty of Taiwan’s mountains.
In the end, we hope people can immerse themselves in this calm, peaceful, and breathtaking environment, while reflecting on how they feel towards Taiwan’s mountains.
Exhibition Walkthrough
During half and two days event, 344 visitors came by visiting our project, and some of them shared their feedbacks to us. We created a post-in wall to facilitate visitors leave their message here, and we were inspired by their feedback and stories a lot. Later, we were invited to exhibit one of our artwork, Shape of the Mountains, in Mountains • Conversation • Siraya exhibition, which their core vision corresponded to our initial intention of promoting beauty of Taiwan.
It’s the longest project duration I’ve ever worked with the most satisfying outcome. We were glad to hear from our audiences that the flow of the visit experience was wonderful.
During the idea iteration stage, I found that it would be more simple to focus and lock down details of art through our instinct. The outcome of prototype analysis was still important for us but we had to sense these ideas, group up what we want to express, then combine them into a great visiting experience. That’s a new mindset I learned in this project.