Cities come to life through design, industries thrive on design, and lives are enriched by design.
On November 1st, Wuhan City of Design kicks off its 2024 "Design Day"at Minzhong Park, a cherished memory for generations of Wuhan residents.
Themed "New Quality Design, Integrated Creativity," this event will showcase Wuhan's innovative achievements and development experiences in urban renewal, industrial upgrading, and cultural inheritance through themed forums, special events, and unique performances. It aims to contribute the wisdom and strength of Wuhan's design to a better future for cities worldwide.
Industry Leaders Discuss New Productive Forces in Design
In 2017, Wuhan was awarded the title of "City of Design" by UNESCO, and over the past seven years, design has become deeply integrated into the city's development.
This year's Design Day theme activities, in collaboration with UNESCO and UN-Habitat, include the Forum on AI-Driven Enhancement of New Productive Forces, the 2024 Wuhan International Urban Governance Seminar, the 2024 Youth World Heritage Education · Crossover Carnival, and other themed events, fully demonstrating Wuhan's "big design" strength and distinctive, high-quality ecosystem as a City of Design.
On the opening day, the Forum on AI-Driven Enhancement of New Productive Forces revolves around research findings and practical experiences in AI and design innovation both domestically and internationally, facilitating dialogue and cooperation among governments, enterprises, academia, and the public. Industry leaders such as Chen Dongliang, Vice President of the China Industrial Design Association, Li Ting, a National Master in Engineering Survey and Design, and Wen Xiao, Senior Technical Director of Alibaba Cloud, participate in the discussions.
According to a reporter from Jimeu News, on November 2nd, the UN-Habitat will hold an International Seminar on Urban Governance in Wuhan. Professor David Shaw from the University of Liverpool, UK, and Huang Huan, the principal of the Wuhan Planning and Design Institute, deliver keynote speeches on the theme of "Urban Governance from the Perspective of Industry and Operation". Subsequent round-table forums delve into discussions on issues related to urban governance.
Theopening and closing ceremonies of this year's Design Day will be held at the newly upgraded Minzhong Park. As a key urban renewal project in Wuhan, Minzhong Park, constructed by China MCC20, officially opened to the public on June 28th. It preserves the old while introducing new business forms, revitalizing the old space through design, blending historical culture with modern life.
A responsible person from Minzhong Park told Jimeu News that from November 1st to 2nd, the park's circular corridor hosts the 2024 Wuhan Design Day Creative Innovation Carnival, showcasing the development achievements of Wuhan's characteristic industrial parks. The event features six interactive and performance sections, including anime immersive experiences, game interactions, original fashion shows, innovative intangible cultural heritage displays, digital creativity exhibitions, and creative design forums. Citizens are invited to attend and enjoy the activities.
Six Creative Parks to Host Nearly 30 Special Events
"Design is everywhere in the city and in our lives." The Design Day event is structured in a "1+2+6" format, featuring one main venue, two sub-venues, and six creative parks.
The six parks—Red T Fashion Creative District, D+M Industrial Design Town, Wuhan Creative World, the Old Site of Hankou Pinghe Packing Factory, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) Science and Technology Industrial Park, and DaZhi WuJie Aerial Town—each have their unique characteristics, embodying the concept of "one park, one brand." Nearly 30 special events are held across these six creative demonstration parks. These events take the form of small exhibitions, immersive interactions, corporate creative innovation launches, artistic performances, creative design education, and sharing sessions, allowing citizens to experience the charm of design while participating.
On October 29th, a reporter visited the Duoniu World Fashion Creative Industrial Park at the Old Site of Pinghe Packing Factory, located at 10 Qingdao Road in Hankou. This century-old factory, with a history of 117 years, is the most intact early industrial building in Wuhan and an important industrial heritage structure that bears witness to the city's modern industrial and commercial development.
In conjunction with the Design Day event, the park's Eshe Bookstore Art Gallery is hosting an art sketching works exhibition by 2024 graduate students from the Art Education School of Hubei Institute of Fine Arts. Additionally, the fourth edition of the "Improv Festival, Let's Call It That" national improvdrama festival is held from November 29th to December 8th in the atrium of Gate 1 and the KaiFan Theater. Top comedy troupes from across the countrygather in this river city to witness this annual improv spectacle.
At Wuhan Creative World's He Art Museum, visitors can enjoy a series of exhibitions that showcase boundless creativity and surprises, including the Fu Zhongwang Documentation Exhibition 1974-2024, Poems of the Collective: Exhibition of Resident Artists' Works from Creative World Park, and Traces of Time: Documentation Exhibition for the 10th Anniversary of He Art Museum 2014-2024.
The relevant person in charge of Wuhan Creative World told reporters that the park integrates art originality, research and development, design, and creativity. Based on original art, it encompasses three major creative industry development platforms: production creativity, lifestyle creativity, and artistic creativity. During the Design Day, the "Yuan Xiaofang: The World Belongs to the World" exhibition and the Central China Cultural Capital: Wuhan - Contemporary Art Exhibition from Korean Cities will also be held at Wuhan Creative World.
Planning Cultural and Creative Center: Building a Network Linking Global Creative Cities
On the opening day of Wuhan City of Design's 2024 Design Day, a seminar on creative city development was held concurrently at the Planning Cultural and Creative Center of the Wuhan Planning and Design Institute.
A reporter from Jimu News learned that the "Planning" Cultural and Creative Center is a transformed, relatively enclosed space on the first floor of the original office building. Using the concept of "lightweight ideas, lightweight materials, lightweight spaces, and lightweight costs," it has been turned into a highly shared, culturally and artistically rich co-working space that is open to the public, integrating technical exchanges, exhibitions, project launches, international exchanges, and a city reading room. It also serves as a communication venue for "Wuhan City of Design" to connect with the global creative cities network.
Upon entering the "Planning" Cultural and Creative Center, the original large dome space has been utilized to create a visually connected axis functional space by opening up the curved partitions. The original structural columns have been transformed into themed book display walls featuring topics such as city photography, spatial art, architectural design, urban planning, and the history of Wuhan. Additionally, a collection of old items from planners is displayed.
The center is also equipped with a coffee bar and a cultural and creative display counter. Visitors to the cultural and creative space can enjoy "Planning" coffee, developed by the champion of the China region of the World Barista Championship, while experiencing the historical and cultural heritage of Wuhan and the professional and technical features of urban planning.
According to reports, since its launch, the center has received overwhelming praise, attracting experts from major planning and design institutions, planning universities, and related industries across the country to visit and exchange ideas.
On November 2, the "International Creative Coffee Talk : Conservation Concepts and Practices in Historic Districts" is also held at this cultural and creative center. Experts and scholars, including Liu Xingda, Chairman of Pan-Asia Environmental International Planning and Design Co., Ltd., and the Dean of a college at the University of Queensland in Australia, use coffee as a medium for technical exchanges and stimulating innovative thinking to discuss urban renewal topics such as design-led city development, promoting industrial integration, and enhancing the quality of life.
