Taipei hosts global talent design festival

2015/09/17

The inaugural Global Talent Design Festival kicked off Sept. 15 in Taipei City, spotlighting Taiwan’s design prowess and the creative potential of its rising talents.

Co-organized by iSee Taiwan Foundation and Sayling Wen Cultural and Educational Foundation, the event is supported by 10 design associations from home and abroad. These include India Design Council, International Council of Design and Japan Design Forum and Workshop.

ISee CEO Don Chen said the festival is an expansion of the Taiwan International Student Design Competition, first held in 2008 under the auspices of the Ministry of Education.

“The cultural and creative industry in Taiwan has expanded rapidly in recent years. Our event capitalizes on this growth and presents the beauty of Taiwan’s unique culture to the world while establishing the country as a hub for global design.”

Echoing Chen’s remarks, Sayling CEO Jeter Her said the festival serves as an exchange and learning opportunity for local students and their overseas counterparts. “By fostering cross-cultural and cross-domain exchanges, the event provides a great platform for young designers to introduce innovative concepts and thinking from different perspectives.”

Running until late November, the festival features forums, speeches and workshops hosted by international design heavyweights, as well as architecture and cultural tours of Taiwan’s iconic sites including Fort San Domingo, National Palace Museum and Taipei 101.

A highlight of the event is TISDC, which received nearly 8,000 submissions from around 800 educational institutions in 46 countries and territories. Contestants will vie for the honor and top prize of NT$400,000 (US$12,214), with the winners announced in mid-October.

The record number is almost twice that of last year and underscores the annual competition’s status as a benchmark for aspiring designers.

Another important component of the festival is the announcement of the TISDC Best Design School Rankings. Assessed by representatives from the 10 participating design associations, the indicator helps lift standards and cement Taiwan’s place as a leader in art and design.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=236695&ctNode=2194&mp=9)