Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño by Liang Hou

Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño by Liang Hou is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 A' Design Award de Hierro in Diseño Educativo Competition Category.

HierroEducación· 2025

Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño

by Liang Hou

Client: Zhejiang University

A' Design Award de Hierro Winner in Educación Category

22,874
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #170646

View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño

Heritage Spark es un kit de herramientas didáctico para el trabajo de diseño basado en el Patrimonio Cultural Inmaterial. El kit contiene tres juegos de tarjetas. Las tarjetas de patrimonio presentan diez manifestaciones del Patrimonio Cultural Inmaterial para una comprensión rápida. Las tarjetas de personajes permiten estudiar cada manifestación patrimonial desde distintos roles. Las tarjetas de tecnología proponen opciones técnicas capaces de inspirar nuevas ideas. Dos lienzos de pensamiento, uno individual y otro para equipos, favorecen el trabajo colaborativo. Las tarjetas están impresas digitalmente sobre papel estucado y troqueladas. Heritage Spark está dirigido a estudiantes sin conocimientos previos sobre la materia.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award de Hierro

Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño ha ganado el A' Design Award de Hierro, un reconocimiento prestigioso concedido a buenos diseños que cumplen los requisitos profesionales e industriales que se esperan de creaciones bien diseñadas. Los ganadores de Hierro demuestran gran habilidad, alta especialización, comprensión experta y capacidad creativa de sus creadores. Se espera que Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño sea una creación muy apreciada, admirada y querida, práctica e innovadora. Este diseño ganador del A' Design Award de Hierro integra las mejores prácticas del sector y tiene características técnicas competentes unidas a conocimiento práctico y talento. Heritage Spark Kit de herramientas de pensamiento de diseño es respetado por su minuciosidad y está concebido para aportar mejoras en la calidad de vida que ayudan a hacer del mundo un lugar mejor.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Heritage Spark is one of the few auxiliary tools for Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) designing in China. It is highly accessible to students unfamiliar with ICH, enabling them to quickly grasp its various types. Using a collaborative role-playing analysis method, it streamlines the design and creative process. Beyond being a design aid, it also plays a key role in promoting ICH.
Dimensions & Packaging: The cards measure 95mm x 133mm with a thickness of 0.3mm. The toolkit includes two thought canvases: a personal canvas (A4 size, 210mm x 297mm) and a team canvas (460mm x 960mm) for collaborative work. The packaging box measures 460mm x 320mm x 80mm, designed for convenient storage and transport. The materials and dimensions ensure durability and usability, making the toolkit suitable for various design and brainstorming scenarios.
Tags: ICH Design, Inspiration Inspired, Design Assistance, Toolkit, ICH
Production Technology: The design was created using Photoshop and Illustrator, then digitally printed on 300g coated paper and die-cut for precision. The process included user research, workshop testing, and design thinking methodologies to refine content and usability, ensuring the toolkit aligns with user needs. The cards were produced in small batches, ensuring quality and adaptability.
Design Challenge: The challenge lies in designing a set of cards that can enable ICH (Intangible Cultural Heritage) novices to quickly understand its value and essence, while also effectively stimulating user empathy to identify pain points from the perspective of ICH bearers. The cards must balance knowledge dissemination with thought stimulation, ultimately encouraging users to contribute innovative ideas for the future of ICH.
Research: Heritage Spark cards are designed to provide a quick entry point for users with no prior knowledge of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). This research explores how card design can effectively convey ICH knowledge, foster user empathy, and encourage users to adopt the perspective of ICH bearers. The cards guide users to identify challenges facing ICH, define problems, and utilize divergent thinking to generate innovative solutions for ICH protection and transmission.
Inspiration: In the era of rapid technological growth, the protection and promotion of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) face major challenges. Our course experience and student feedback reveal a lack of ICH awareness. To foster innovative ICH design, it is essential to quickly grasp its essence, analyze its status from various angles, and explore its fusion with new technologies. Thus, we created Heritage Spark, a toolkit to inspire creative ICH design.
Project Duration: The project started in Hangzhou, China, in January 2024.
Operation Flow: The toolkit includes ICH cards, introducing ten ICH to build a quick understanding. Character cards help users explore ICH from different roles and perspectives. Technology cards offer various tech options to inspire diverse designs through integration. Additionally, two thought canvases support process development and idea exchange, fostering collaborative design.
Team Members: Creative Director: Liang Hou, Researcher: Wenqi Wu, Designer: Qianyu Tang, Designer: Yixuan Gao, Designer: Xiaoran Zhang, Designer: Chongjun Zhong, Designer: Songruoyao Wu; Designer: Yingping Cao; Tutor: Zhibin Zhou and Tutor: Kejun Zhang
Image Credits: The above material comes from our own team.