This Week
China is now a country where the individual can express themselves through what they own. The desire for the latest technology, the newest fashions and the coolest cars is driving economic change. Most, if not all, of these goods are still designed in the west but manufactured in China. The focus of this week will be to ask if this is about to change and, if it does, what will be the impact on designers and other creatives in the west?
Lecture: China and Us
The final lecture will explore the potential for our relationship with China and the Chinese. What opportunities are there to do business there, or even work and live there? What does the future hold for design – will China move from being the place where designs are sent to be made by the west, to being the source of designs we consume here? And is this a threat, or an opportunity?
Viewing
- People’s Republic of Capitalism Part 2: Maoism to Meism
Reading
- As China Goes
Recommended Viewing
- Empire of the Sun (1987) This movie is based on the autobiographical novel of the same name by JG Ballard. If you’ve not watched it yet, now would be a good time as it provides a bit of a break from the discussion of modern China and a look back at an important time in Chinese history, albeit told from the point of view of a British child.
