Artttt!

Summer is coming, so does our new project!!! I extremely enjoy the topic of our project, which is about gender perspectives on art in Public space.

I like art that addresses social issues since art is not just about aesthetics and madness. What’s more is its strong social influence and illustration of something invisible visible. In this project, we focused on gender perspective, which was already a very heated issue since 19^th. But this gender discussion still lasts because there are so many problematic issues such as the inequality of men and women, the social approval of queer and homosexual etc.

For me, I felt I have been involved in a critical discussion on this kind of feminist topic. I get the feeling that this project is going to be achieved in a tentative method, which I interpret, document, intervene, activate, demonstrate and critically reflect on. I hope in this project I can reveal both problematic issues and new possibilities to the art in public space.

Here we used collage( pictures and words from gender-specific male and female magazines) to illustrate our statements and perspectives on queer related issues.

Summer has arrived in Gothenburg!

Today was officially the first day I didn’t have to wear a jacket outside in Sweden! Now that the temperature is rising, and the sun is shining, Gothenburg city is filled with people walking the streets, drinking iced lattes, jogging, and simply enjoying the great weather. Now I see why all the Swedes keep such positive spirits in the dreary winter days, because Swedish summer is so lovely! Ha.

As for me, I’ve been incredibly busy and challenged with my work placement course. It has made me realize that i made the right choice to study human resources. Getting a glimpse of daily life has me looking forward to my future career.

But of course, with full time work, I don’t forget to have a proper work-life balance. So on my free time Ive been enjoying Gothenburg with being outdoors around the city canals, doing BBQ, and some hiking.

This weekend is supposed to be clear skies and 24 degrees Celsius. So I hope all you göteborgare “njuter av” this Florida-like sunny summer weather.

Performing Art in Kungsparken!

What a nice day today!!

Corresponding to the good weather, we had a workshop in Kungsparken. This time, we designers tried performing art in public to influence people. Each of us pretended to be a sculpture artist explaining the five public sculptures that we designed.

With a piece of title in hand, 23 sculpture artists were there delivering short speeches to the public about their sculptures. Our teacher, as well as the artist, guided us all the way from HDK to Kungsparken.

This has been a really funny performance. The process was filled with laughter, people’s attention,  cheers, and sunbathing! Hope you also enjoy my pictures!

Why Gothenburg is a “Top-Notch” City for International Students

A recent survey called the ‘International Student Barometer’ (ISB) was done by international students.This was the 3rd time the University of Gothenburg participated to assess international students’ expectations and impressions within certain areas in a national and international perspective.

Well…Results are in, and the survey says that the University of Gothenburg tops the nation when it comes to the overall living experience!

Frankly, im not surprised…I think Gothenburg is a fabulous place to live and study. I don’t know exactly what all international students think, but this survey says that most of them probably agree with me.

This survey has inspired me to list some reasons why Gothenburg is an awesome place to live. Enjoy

Nightlife is so fun, especially on what Swedes call “Lönhelg,” pay weekend. ;)

Sometimes its just really pretty

afterwork drinks

In Sweden, there is 1 of only 3 Starbucks in Gothenburg Station.

In Gothenbug, you can have any reason for a nice drink. We were celebrating the sunshine. :)

there is always places to see and things to do. This is Liseberg, Gothenburgs themepark.

West coast seafood in Gothenburg, YUM!

charming cafes

very hospitable and student-friendly pubs

always people wanting to hang out.

Blå Stället Epilogue

Today is the last day of our project. We had a mini presentation for blå stället (three minutes each person) and it is a happy ending! Since all of us, no matter graphic designers or product designers all started our projects within the same context, which was related to Angered area, this has been a commonality for us to share and talk about. As I said before, I was extremely curious about how we designers help Angered Area and the culture house blå stället solve their problems. It ended up with so many interesting and energetic ideas!

I feel so good being in such a class with designers from different backgrounds. We shared our expertise and presented our solutions for the similar purpose but different formats. Some of the graphic designers in my class designed brand identity, typeface, workshop strategies and so on through visual communication. Product designers delivered public and sharing objects in a three dimensional way, like public seating, sharing tables, tableware etc.

Markus and I designed a social table for immigrants to communicate. The table acts as both a comfortable meeting space as well as a trigger for conversation. I didn’t expected too much for this table but the result turns out to be really good! People in blå stället are quite interested in this table and they want to have it in their place!

Now I am very proud to show you some pictures of our presentation. Hope you enjoy it!

Chalmers Cortege – Best parade…EVER!

This past Tuesday night I witnessed one of the most impressive, well-thought out and detailed parade of my life!

This parade was put on by Chalmers University, a neighboring engineer university to Göteborgs Universitet. The parade is called the Cortège, or The Chalmers Cortège, and is an annual carnival parade held on Walpurgis Night (April 30) by students of the Chalmers Uni. in Gothenburg. The Cortège consists of around 600 students and around 50 truck carriages, each carriage depicting, in a satirical and comical way, significant events that have taken place since the previous parade. The parade makes its way through Gothenburg city centre, where it is seen by around 250,000 people each year. Although all of floats had signs in Swedish, they were very creative in getting the message across and reenacting the famous events. I must say, WELL DONE CHALMERS STUDENTS! I had a great time enjoying the Swedish sunshine, drinking rose, and watching the floats. Check out some of there work!:

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtVRgm6hhH8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wezphy_7QtI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQi8sN1MVDA