Student creativity on show in Dubai
Seven graduates and students from NUS Division of Industrial Design (DID) will showcase their novel ideas at the prestigious Global Grad Showfrom 24 to 29 October as part of Dubai Design Week.
The annual event, now into its second year, is an exhibition of innovative student works from the world’s leading design schools. This year’s show features 145 projects from 50 universities, organised around themes of empowerment, connectivity and sustainability, that aim to venture beyond aesthetics to transform the future.
“NUS is honoured to be able to present some of our best student works for the second year running during Dubai Design Week. The range of projects presented by the students cover various design fields, from environmental to the humanistic, and we hope the audience will enjoy exploring the possibilities at the exhibition,” said Associate Professor Christian Gilles Boucharenc, Head of DID.
One of the projects on display is Sim Hao Jie’s Flair, a botanical air purifier for urban apartments. Hao Jie’s design drew on NASA research and rigorous experiments in the design of the airflow schematics. His project harness the natural abilities of plants to remove common volatile organic compounds circulating in the home — including toxins from paint, carpets and adhesives — while beautifying the living space.
Levit8 is a portable standing desk that incorporates a simple origami twist-and-fold technique
Another project is Levit8, designed by Poh Hui Qing, along with Year 4 student Letitia Lim and Year 3 student Andriana Justine. Levit8 is an affordable portable standing desk that uses a simple twisting origami technique to fold flat when not in use. The product easily withstands a weight of more than 10kg and allows users to effortlessly alternate between sitting and standing at one’s desk, for a healthier work life. The trio’s design achieved its crowdfunding target in less than two days on the Kickstarter platform.
Lee Si Min will be presenting Blendor at the show. Her invention allows children to experiment with mixing colours in a fun way and without mess, by pouring digitally coloured content from one Blendor to another, and observing or adjusting the resulting colour change.
Also on display are the works of Loh Zhide and Loren Lim. Zhide’s Livefeed is a portable air quality sensor designed to be affixed to electronic fans. Using the air passing through the fan as a power source, the non-invasive sensor provides readings of air quality without the need for batteries or electricity. Meanwhile, Loren’s Oneware is a series of modular units designed to help those with only one functioning arm perform kitchen chores, from food preparation to dish washing, efficiently.
Blendor allows children to explore mixing colours without the mess
