Winner Research Award 2020 (first place)
On December 9th, 2020, Stella Shi won the first prize of the annual Research Award with her graduation work Formation of a New Order: Story of Pass_Permit. In this interview, we look back at Stella’s time at WdKA and look forward to her evolving career.
As a data designer, I really like to collect facts, items, objects and anything else that reflects the subject or event I am researching.
What have you been up to since graduation?
Because of the current situation regarding the Corona pandemic, I considered moving back to China, my home country. I would like to stay in Netherlands, to apply for a job, or start my master study. But given the current restrictions, it’s very difficult to find the right job that you would opt for normally. And I can almost foresee that the lockdown will continue for another while. But eventually I chose to stay here, and I applied for a Search Year Visa, which legally extends my stay in The Netherlands and allows me to work here. Currently I am working at a KCAP Architects&Planners as a Graphic Designer.
Can you tell us a bit more about your graduation work and how it came about?
As we all know, Corona first broke out in China in January 2020. And as international students, we got first-hand information about the situation there. So, whereas the people here in the West were not yet aware of how serious the pandemic was, we received a lot of worrying news from our friends and family. At that point I realised that I was very far away from the situation while at the same time, I could follow it closely since I know the language and I could follow the local news. I saw this neutral outsider-perspective as a large advantage for documenting the situation.
As a data designer, I really like to collect facts, items, objects and anything else that reflects the subject or event I am researching. And while doing so, I noticed this pass-permit that was used in China to restrict people’s daily mobility in order to reduce the number of infections. The instance this system was put in place, thousands of residential pass-permits were distributed across China almost overnight. I found this idea of the pass-permit quite intriguing and was eager to document this phenomenon, so I started collecting the photographs of pass-permits my family and friends sent me. For my graduation project, I analysed the restrictions imposed by each pass-permit. As an end product, I created a book that contains visualisations of my research, maps, photographs and real-life stories that show the changing lifestyle caused by the outbreak of Corona. With this book, I aim to archive and document a global event starting from a simple object—the pass-permit.
What do you hope your work brings about?
I personally feel like I am often moved, touched and inspired by the artworks of others, which in many cases, stimulated my critical thinking. I hope that my work can have the same effect on my audience—that they will start to think about questions they couldn’t answer in the past. Or that it simply opens a new door, or changes someone’s mindset. Matters such as the global pandemic and mobility restriction are very complex. You cannot just judge countries that impose mobility restrictions, nor the ones that don’t. You would need to have a close look at their situation first. I think it is very important for people to look at things from a different perspective. Especially nowadays, with so much fast information available. I really want to reflect on the things that are often perceived through biases or stereotypes, and to question what really matters.
How did you experience graduating in Corona times?
Normally, teachers and classmates would recognize me as someone committed and hardworking. But when the lockdown started, my productivity dropped a lot. It was very hard for me to focus because something much bigger than my graduation was taking place. And that was intimidating and overwhelming. One positive thing about this situation, is that I had more contact with my friends and family in China, which later became valuable input for my graduation project.
How has your graduation work influenced your perspective on your current or future practice?
I think my graduation project was a product of its time. It’s not a theme I imagined I would choose normally. But when I analyse the works I’ve made throughout my time at the academy, I do see a common ground. I like to make books, to design editorial layouts, to design information, to collect, to archive, to do analytical work, to categorise things, et cetera. All of these aspects are reflected in my graduation project as well. And on a more conceptual level, I figured I’m interested in social topics or issues. Not necessarily by making a statement on them, but by analysing an item that represents them. In the case of my graduation project, this was the pass-permit. I think that demonstrates the way I generally work.
My works are not very direct, but they revolve around fun little facts that help unravel the larger issue or topic.
How would you introduce yourself as a practitioner today?
I would say I’m someone who is keen to explore and understand the characteristics of things and topics and to visualise artistic concepts in a structured way.
What role did WdKA, and your practice, play in the process of becoming the professional you are today?
I started studying at WdKA at a time in which I didn’t have much of an idea of what design could be. I only knew I wanted to work in the creative industry and gave it a try. WdKA was the place that provided me the possibility to explore my options. It feels like an incubator—it changed my way of thinking and of looking at design a lot. Also, the input from the tutors really helped me develop an open-minded way of thinking. At first, I was unsure of how I should approach my teachers’ feedback. I just followed what they recommended. Later, I started to develop my own filter and applied their feedback in a way that was of the best value to myself. I think that is a very useful quality and shows how the Academy has helped me grow and become more mature.
What is the future of your work field, in your opinion?
As I said earlier, I feel like we live in a time in which information is transmitted at a very fast rate. Newspapers and books are becoming outdated while digital sources of information are growing. I wonder what the balance between digital and printed media will be in the future. That's also why I wanted to use a medium that presents information more slowly. I think that I am trying to raise people’s attention again, slowing down their pace of life. I feel like that, at a certain point, people will realise that we live in an extremely fast time and that we should slow down a bit or take a little break. And that’s what I am looking forward to. At that time, people like myself can offer them other ways of taking in information, ones that allow for a better focus and more time to think.
For more information about Stella’s work Formation of a New Order: Story of Pass_Permit, check out her graduation catalogue page. Furthermore, Stella’s journey can be followed on Behance, Instagram, and on her personal website.
