“Designing space is equivalent to designing lives. Architects and industrial designers have continuously transformed space over time. Now the concept of space has expanded to virtual reality beyond three-dimensional space. It is an irony that COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this evolution,” said Herald Corp. CEO Jeon Chang-hyeop in his opening remarks.

The forum, attended by more than 500 people, was led by 13 renowned figures in the fields of architecture, mobility and non-fungible tokens, bringing varied insights to the table.

"Herald Design Forum has provided a platform for a variety of discussions on design. This year’s edition discusses architecture with nature, mobility as renovation of space and how virtual reality would affect our lives in the future. I hope these discussions help in making policy for both public design and the industry,” said Prime Minister Han Duck-soo in a video message.

“In the advent of a new age, designers were given challenging and interesting tasks to explore the directions of design. The ministry will do our best to support designers in presenting brilliant ideas,” said Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-gyoon in a video message.

The forum, which got underway with an online lecture by Japanese architect Tadao Ando titled “Life Full of Dreams and Architecture,” consisted of lectures, question-and-answer sessions and roundtable talks.

In the opening lecture, Tadao delivered a message that architecture should remain vivid in people’s hearts as a space where people interact with the environment and the surrounding nature.

Other speakers gave presentations on site. New York-based Venezuelan architect Alfredo Brillembourg, the founder of Urban-Think Tank Design Group, gave a presentation titled “Urban Think Tank: Implementing Urban Acupuncture” followed by Norwegian urban economist Ida Lien, Brillembourg’s colleague and a co-founder of Urban-A, who shared her insight with a presentation titled “Urban-A: Transforming the Impossible.”

Paris-based Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut delivered his vision of eco-responsible architecture as an ecological architect with the theme of “Fertile Cities: Facing the Challenges of the 21st entury,” introducing green architectural projects planned by his team.

The architect called for eco-friendly approach in architectures and urban design, citing his projects in Europe and Asia. One example is the “Tao Zhu Yin Yuan” residential high-rise in Taipei, Taiwan covered with some 23,000 trees that help the annual carbon absorption.

The mobility session held in the afternoon began with a presentation by Yoon Il-hun, vice president of HMC Genesis Design Group, who joined Genesis design at Hyundai Group in 2016. Yoon shared his vision on the future of Genesis’ identity. Other speakers in the session were British automobile designer Ian Callum, the founding director of Callum, and user experience designer Park Su-re.

Callum, who has been designing cars for more than 40 years, was the director of design for Jaguar Land Rover, a position he held for 20 years until he founded his own company in 2019.

The 68-year-old British luxury car designer urged designers to transform the way they interpret transportation as a mere object for mobility and narrate brand stories within their work.

The speakers for the last session on NFT technology and user experience writing were Wirelink Inc. Director Gino Park; Park Kwang-hoon, Shinhan Card DX Management Team Leader; Fourgrit Inc. Founder ＆ CEO Park Tae-joon; illustrator Zipcy; Thanks Carbon Inc. CEO Kim Hae-won; and IBCT CEO Lee Jong-ryun.

Lee of IBCT CEO referred to “Gartner hype cycle” to help audiences understand the current state of the NFT industry, explaining the industry is at a time of self-purification in order to mature and establish itself as an industry after reaching the peak of public interest and attention last year.

Lee added that NFT technology can be utilized for three purposes – ownership, digital certificate and license of use.

The annual Herald Design Forum, inaugurated in 2011, has grown into a global knowledge platform where more than 100 renowned global design masters have taken to the stage over the past 11 years. Last year’s edition was held online and offline with the theme of “What Comes After?” discussing how design should adapt to changes brought on by the pandemic.

By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)