Director's Note: Tima Fei, a design student from Donghua University visited Design Shanghai 2024 as part of City News Service's "Spark Creator Program." Shanghai has a diverse population of foreigners from countries around the world, with different professional backgrounds and age groups. We're delighted to have a young perspective on the "big things" that Shanghai is doing. – Jacob Aldaco

I chose Shanghai, to study art and design. You might think, "Why not New York, or Paris, or Milan?"

Here's why. Shanghai… is China's, New York City. The number of innovations (especially in technology), personalities and events taking place in this city are enormous. It is a place that is constantly changing and evolving, which is an ideal environment for creatives to thrive and grow. This vibrant atmosphere is why people who are passionate about art and design, (like myself), choose Shanghai over other cities.

The Design Expo, which I had the pleasure of attending, is an essential event for designers, buyers, architects, and students seeking inspiration, and is a prime example of why Shanghai is itself, a capital for design and fashion.

Initial Impressions

The Expo was held at the expansive Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Center. As expected of Shanghai, it was a huge venue. Surprisingly, it was quite organized. However, if you are a foreigner you have to take extra steps to enter, like going to a special booth where they will take your passport information and take your picture.

Fortunately, it didn't take too long.

Upon entering I immediately noticed, that the whole venue reminded me of an airport. Different information booths trying to navigate clueless visitors, giant escalators going back and forth, and a bunch of randomly placed cafes and restaurants with a smell of cheap coffee surrounding them. I did feel quite overwhelmed for the first 15 minutes if I'm being honest.

The number of people attending was truly impressive. Hundreds upon hundreds, maybe thousands. I had never seen this many people gathered in one place for a design exhibition before. I noticed that the demographic was leaning more professional, which was expected, as the event was mostly catering to potential buyers and investors, for a design student, it's incredible to have opportunities to explore design among these types of people.

However, there were still plenty of students looking around, again, me included. The place was divided into sections and halls, like "furniture," "lights," "lifestyle" etc. The new shapes of lamps and different types of flooring were not my area of expertise, so after a quick look around, I went straight to the lifestyle section.

Lifestyle and Design

The lifestyle area of the exhibition was the most interesting to me, as it included everything from clothing and jewelry to coffee and candles. Unsurprisingly, there were a lot of new designs that were created using technologies like 3D printing, AI and robotics.

There was a strong emphasis on sustainability and eco-friendliness, especially in materials used for clothing and flooring. However, there were also sections of traditional art and techniques, as well as vintage showrooms.

I feel like that is very much in the spirit of Shanghai, as in leading in the space of innovations, but also embracing its cultural heritage.

Shanghai on the Rise in Design

The people in attendance at those showrooms were also very knowledgeable, with most speaking very good English, a clear indicator that Shanghai's rise as an international hub continues. But that was the whole point of this global event, there were people from all over the world. A lot of brands were very new and local to the place of their origin. Their goals were to present their innovative products to a new audience and potential investors. While the bigger, more established brands, usually not from China, were showing their latest products.

The expo also held conferences and speeches, unfortunately, I couldn't attend them, as I had classes to attend. However, I still enjoyed my time there. It is always interesting to see how our society continues to come up with new ways to improve and change already existing things or come up with entirely new ones. For a fashion student like myself, it is important to attend these kinds of events to get inspiration for my own future work, as well as build connections, and so I am super grateful for being in a city like Shanghai that can host these types of global design events.

If you're into design, fashion, and how these things intersect with innovation and art, I highly recommend that creatives and business professionals attend, particularly in Shanghai, where the frequency and quality of these events are on the rise.

As for me, it is important to get out there and experience new ideas and meet new people. It is always very inspiring to me to see how other young people express themselves through their art and projects and are not afraid to show them off in a professional setting. That motivates me personally to keep going and stop doubting myself.

If you're into video, you can check my Instagram (@tima_feifei) for a short VLOG that I did on my time there.