Jing He

CumLaude

Prizes: Gijs Bakker Award Winner

Department: Contextual Design
Website: he-jing.com

Tulip Pyramid

The tulip vase is a 17th-century Dutch invention. However, its
form, motifs and material all imitate Chinese porcelain pagodas.
Jing He uses this history in ‘Tulip Pyramid’ to explore her
identity as a Chinese designer. Today China is known for its
mass copies. In this context, what does it mean to be original?
Can copying also be creative?
To try and find answers, she continues the process of replicating
and transforming. She asks five young Chinese designers to
reflect on the culture of imitation and innovation by designing
two layers of her pyramid. Jing He also sees the pyramid as
a metaphor for herself. Her origins are in China, but her studies
in the Netherlands helped to form her, giving her another
perspective on design. And so, in a second pyramid, she imitates
and mixes up famous Dutch designers’ works with her own
previous work. Each structure becomes an original expression
of Dutch and Chinese design, culture and history.