I’m so excited that the V&A have provided so big a space for me. Also I need to thank HSBC who sponsored this residency and gave me the chance to be here. Thanks to the nice staff here, you are so kind to help me. And I’m so sorry I can’t remember everyone’s name, but I will try my best to remember your names in the future. Especially I need to thank Ruth, I’m a troublemaker for her, and she solved many problems for me.
My studio at the V&A – © HSBC
I have been here for one month, and in this month I did research in the museum. So I have had no chance to write my Blog. Now it’s fine. And I can write down the things I saw here and the feeling of the museum collections and the British culture. So I can communicate with you via Blog.
It’s the first time I saw so many collections. Even when I went to the museums when I was in China I have never seen so many different kinds of collections from different countries. It really shook me. Facing so many fantastic things I was overcome and also inspired by the collections. And I wondered about the creators’ thinking behind the objects they made. Because I like to put the conditions at that time in context, then I can understand why artists thought in that way. But the collection isn’t alive and the objects can’t tell me the story behind the collections. So sometimes it’s difficult for me to understand more and also my English level doesn’t let me catch the whole meaning. So sometimes I will add my own thoughts: maybe it’s not correct but it’s interesting when you are thinking your way.
I like to observe the things around myself and the way people use them. It’s very interesting and you can be inspired by them. British people are very gentlemanly; they always stand at the side of the tube doors and give more space for people to get on and get off. But the tubes are very crowded, especially near the door. Between the seats there is space for the passengers to stand but normally there are not so many passengers there because the space is so narrow that can’t contain very many people. So that space’s rate of use isn’t so high, and the space is not very useful. So maybe it’s a reason why the tubes are always so busy. In the tube it’s difficult to read newspapers when the tube is crowded and not so many people listen to MP3 players, so it’s boring when you travel in the tube and it costs you so much time for travelling because London is a big city. And I’m sorry I don’t like the signage in the tube stations because it’s difficult to find the right way. I noticed there is same trouble for the visitors here. After several times I can remember the way to get in the correct direction. I hope it will be much better in the future and not to get lost in the London tube. Very different from the London tube, the London bus is very nice. From the exterior to interior it looks very good and designers also consider many details for the passengers’ needs.
Tottenham court road tube station
I love watching people cooking and in China when my flatmate cooked I would stand by the side and enjoy watching her cook. Eating delicious food gives you pleasure and watching people cooking is also a pleasure thing. My family and friends always asked if I could adapt the custom here. I thought everything is alright here and everything is very new for me. It’s my first time in London, I’m a freshman here. But it’s so amazing that I can feel the different culture and environment and try different things here.
I like architecture, although I’m not a architect. I think architecture can present this country’s aesthetics tastes and character inside. I love the old-style buildings here. And the new buildings some I like but some I don’t, because you can see the same style new building in every big city, so it’s not so exciting.
In the next five months I will try to design some furniture, tableware, cookware and maybe some home appliance electronic goods as well. I hope you will be able to give me some advice and drop in to my studio, so we can learn from each other. And In Chinese New Year we have special events here. Hope you enjoy and have fun here.
终于有了工作室。
很兴奋V&A提供那么大一个工作室给我。同时非常感谢HSBC汇丰银行对这次活动的赞助。感谢V&A的同事们，每次总是很热情的帮助我。非常抱歉没能记住你们每个人的名字，但我会努力记住你们的名字。
其中要感谢的是Ruth，我总是给她制造难题，她总是耐心的帮我解决问题。
第一个月我一直在博物馆里看藏品做研究，所以没有机会写自己的Blog。现在安顿好了，终于可以把自己在这里的所见所闻，和一些对藏品和英国文化的感受写下来和大家交流。
如此丰富的藏品我第一看到，虽然在国内我也经常去博物馆，看很少能看到各个国家各种文化的藏品。这对我是一种震撼，面对这些美轮美奂的藏品我惊叹先人的创 作构思，同时也从中得到很多创作的灵感。总想去探究当时创作者的构思，因为我喜欢结合当时的条件来思考问题，但是有时比较困难，藏品不会说话，而且我的英 语水平也达不到理解全部意思。所以有时就加些自己的想象，虽然会片面但也挺有趣。
我喜欢观察周围的事物，观察人在使用物品时的习惯。发现英国人很绅士，地铁总是很济，中间的位置很空，门周边的位置比较空，大家都习惯靠在边上留出更多的 空间来给上下客人，不过现在地铁车厢座椅区域的空间太小，利用率非常低，这估计是造成现在地铁这么拥挤的其中一个原因。人多的时候看报纸总是很困难，也很 少人听MP3，坐车时比较无聊，而且总是要花上很长时间在路上。我不喜欢地铁的方向指示，好几次都坐反了方向，总是努力寻找但是很困难，我注意也有一些旅 游者有这样的困扰。坐多了就记方位了，也许以后指示系统能好些，那我就不用记方位了，在这个迷宫里就不会迷路了。不同于伦敦地铁，伦敦的巴士设计不管从外 观和内部设计都很棒，在细节设计上充分考虑了使用者的需求。
喜欢看英国人做菜，所以如果室友在家做饭的时候我就会站在边上看着。吃美食是一种享受，欣赏烹饪的过程更是一种享受。家人和朋友经常问我是否习惯这边的生 活。我觉得还挺适应，一切事物都很新鲜，因为我是第一次来伦敦，是个菜鸟。不过感受不同文化可以让我做不同的尝试，这很令人兴奋。
喜欢看建筑，虽然我自己不从事建筑设计，但是我觉得建筑很能体现这个国家或者民族的审美倾向和内在气质。所以一有空就出去走走看看伦敦的新老建筑。很喜欢伦敦的一些老建筑，新建筑有些喜欢，有些不喜欢，有些新建筑在世界各地都能看到，风格都差不多。
在剩下的五个月里我会陆续做一些不同种类的设计，包括家具，生活用品，家电电子产品等。希望大家多提意见，在伦敦的朋友有空多来交流，相互学习。在中国新年的时候还有特别的活动。
