Interviews with yefan Liu

Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen see Breathscape Sensory Ritual System as part of a broader cultural shift that values restoration over optimization. Modern life often encourages people to maximize efficiency, but rarely provides opportunities to reconnect with bodily awareness. The designers were interested in exploring whether slowness itself could become a form of design intervention.Throughout the research process, the team observed how digital notifications and fragmented attention have gradually blurred the boundaries between work, leisure, and rest. Many participants described experiencing a sense of constant mental occupation, even during quiet moments. Rather than competing for attention, Breathscape was intentionally designed to create a gentle absence of stimulation.The designers believe that rituals have historically served as anchors in uncertain times. By combining scent, breathing, and tactile interaction, the system encourages users to shift their attention inward rather than outward. This movement from information consumption toward sensory perception became one of the philosophical foundations of the project.In this sense, Breathscape does not attempt to offer productivity or performance. Instead, it proposes a different relationship with time—one based on presence, repetition, and acceptance. The team hopes that such small moments of intentional pause can help people rediscover bodily awareness as a meaningful part of everyday life.

Material development was one of the most demanding aspects of the project for Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen. From the beginning, the team agreed that sustainability should not merely describe the end of a product's life but should influence every stage of interaction, including fragrance delivery, combustion behavior, and post-use disposal.The decision to work with refined tea extracts emerged from extensive experimentation with natural materials. Tea carries deep cultural significance across East Asia, yet it also possesses subtle aromatic characteristics that could support calm and reflective experiences. The team investigated how tea fibers and plant-based binders behaved under controlled burning conditions and repeatedly adjusted thickness, density, and composition to achieve consistent performance.Early prototypes revealed unexpected problems. Some versions burned too quickly, while others generated uneven ash or unstable fragrance release. These failures became valuable learning opportunities. Through multiple rounds of testing, the designers refined the layered paper structure to ensure a slower and more predictable combustion process.At the same time, the ceramic vessel was carefully engineered to separate flame and ash while maintaining airflow and thermal stability. Safety considerations played a central role throughout development. Rather than pursuing intense aroma, the team prioritized subtlety, repeatability, and a calm sensory atmosphere.Ultimately, the project sought to demonstrate that material ethics and sensory quality do not need to exist in opposition. For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, true sustainability means designing systems in which use, transformation, and return are experienced as part of the same continuous cycle.

For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, the most powerful aspect of Breathscape Sensory Ritual System is not a single object or material innovation, but the emotional resonance created through meaningful rituals. While the project incorporates sustainable materials and references traditional philosophies, the team believes that its greatest strength lies in demonstrating how design can shape behavior in gentle and non-prescriptive ways.During the development process, the three designers repeatedly discussed the difference between solving problems and cultivating awareness. Contemporary products often focus on efficiency and measurable outcomes, whereas Breathscape intentionally embraces ambiguity, reflection, and emotional engagement. The system does not seek to optimize users; instead, it encourages them to recognize their own rhythms and establish small moments of intentional presence.This approach naturally intersects with sustainability. The team sees sustainability not merely as reducing environmental impact, but as creating experiences that people genuinely value and therefore wish to maintain. Emotional durability, in their view, is just as important as material durability.Perhaps this combination of cultural depth, sensory subtlety, and behavioral meaning allowed the project to resonate with the jury. Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen believe that design becomes most powerful when it touches not only how people use objects, but also how they experience time, memory, and themselves. In that sense, Breathscape represents an exploration of emotional sustainability as much as environmental responsibility.

One of the most sensitive challenges faced by Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen was how to respectfully translate Traditional Chinese Medicine into contemporary design language without reducing it to visual symbolism or presenting it as scientific authority. The team understood that cultural heritage carries both opportunities and responsibilities.From the beginning, the designers intentionally avoided making therapeutic or medical claims. Instead, they approached Traditional Chinese Medicine as a philosophical framework centered on rhythm, balance, and interconnectedness. Their goal was not to explain physiology, but to invite reflection on temporal awareness and everyday rituals.This philosophy influenced many design decisions. Rather than illustrating organs literally, the visual language employs abstract colors, gradients, and poetic naming to evoke emotional associations. Instructional materials emphasize mindfulness and sensory experience rather than outcomes or health benefits. Even the sequence of interactions was framed as suggestions rather than prescriptions, allowing users to interpret the ritual according to their own experiences.The team believes that abstraction can sometimes preserve cultural integrity more effectively than imitation. By focusing on underlying values rather than external symbols, Breathscape seeks to create a respectful dialogue between tradition and contemporary life.For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, responsible cultural translation means acknowledging that traditions are living systems rather than static artifacts. Design should illuminate their spirit without claiming ownership over their meaning.

Among the many turning points experienced by Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, one user feedback session proved particularly transformative. During early evaluations, participants appreciated the fragrances but tended to treat the cards simply as incense products. They enjoyed the sensory qualities, yet many overlooked the breathing component that the designers considered essential.This observation prompted the team to rethink the entire experience. Rather than adding more information, they explored how packaging, sequencing, and physical interactions could naturally guide behavior. They realized that rituals are rarely learned through instructions alone; they are learned through rhythm and repetition.Another important breakthrough emerged from material failures. Early prototypes generated ash that dispersed too easily, creating practical inconvenience and undermining the symbolic meaning of returning ashes to the soil. After numerous iterations, the team redesigned both the paper structure and ceramic vessel, transforming what had originally been a technical problem into one of the project's most meaningful gestures.Looking back, the designers recognize that many of the strongest features of Breathscape originated from failures rather than initial ideas. Those moments taught them that constraints and misunderstandings often reveal opportunities that cannot be discovered through planning alone.

For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, Breathscape Sensory Ritual System has always been envisioned as an evolving ritual ecosystem rather than a fixed collection of objects. From the beginning, the designers were fascinated by the possibility that rituals could grow with people and adapt to changing emotional and environmental contexts.One direction currently being explored is the development of seasonal scent cycles inspired by natural transitions throughout the year. Instead of treating fragrance as a static experience, the team is interested in how shifts in climate, light, and social rhythms might influence sensory preferences and emotional states. Such seasonal variations could provide users with a deeper awareness of time beyond the structure of a single day.The designers are also interested in expanding the sensory vocabulary of the system. Future iterations may incorporate soundscapes, tactile materials, or subtle lighting elements that support breathing and reflection without becoming technologically overwhelming. The intention is not to increase complexity but to create richer multisensory experiences that remain calm and intuitive.Another exciting possibility involves collective rituals. Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen have discussed how shared experiences around memory, gratitude, and emotional release could create new forms of social connection. In a world increasingly characterized by individualization and digital communication, communal rituals may offer meaningful opportunities for people to reconnect with each other through physical presence and shared rhythms.Ultimately, the team hopes that Breathscape will continue to evolve not only as a product system but also as a platform for exploring how contemporary rituals can foster emotional resilience, ecological awareness, and deeper relationships with time itself.

Although the feedback from the fifteen participants generally confirmed the value of time-based scent selection, Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen were surprised by something they had not initially anticipated. Several participants reported that the ritual gradually became less about fragrance and more about creating moments of transition between activities.Users described the experience as a kind of boundary marker. Lighting a card before beginning focused work, or ending the day with a breathing ritual, helped them psychologically separate different states of mind. This revealed that rituals may function not only as sensory experiences but also as temporal anchors that support emotional regulation.Another unexpected finding involved personalization. Some participants began assigning their own meanings to particular scents based on memories, family experiences, or individual routines. Rather than seeing this as a deviation from the intended design, the team considered it a sign that users were actively co-creating the ritual.These observations suggest that future versions of Breathscape may become more open and adaptive. Instead of prescribing fixed sequences, the system could provide frameworks that allow users to create personal rituals according to their own lifestyles and cultural backgrounds.For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, perhaps the most meaningful discovery was realizing that rituals derive their power not from uniformity, but from the space they leave for interpretation and emotional ownership.

The packaging behavior of Breathscape Sensory Ritual System was intentionally choreographed by Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen as the first chapter of the ritual experience. The team believed that if users encountered the system through hurried or purely functional interactions, much of the intended emotional atmosphere would already be lost.Consequently, the unboxing sequence was designed to unfold gradually rather than reveal everything at once. Each layer introduces a different sensory cue and encourages slower gestures. The designers were inspired by the pacing found in traditional tea ceremonies and the way anticipation itself can become part of an experience.Particular attention was given to tactile qualities. Paper textures, resistance during opening, and the sequence of discovering components were carefully considered. These seemingly subtle details were intended to create a psychological shift away from the speed and immediacy associated with contemporary consumer culture.The team often described the packaging as a threshold rather than a container. It acts as a transitional space between everyday busyness and reflective attention. By slowing down physical interaction, the packaging prepares users mentally and emotionally for the ritual that follows.For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, packaging is not an afterthought but an active participant in storytelling. In Breathscape, the ritual begins long before the scent is released.

Reflecting on the development of Breathscape Sensory Ritual System, Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen believe that working with traditional knowledge systems requires humility, patience, and curiosity. One of the most important lessons they learned was that cultural heritage should not be treated as a visual resource to be extracted, but as a living framework of values and relationships.The designers encourage emerging practitioners to spend time understanding the philosophical foundations behind traditions rather than focusing exclusively on symbols and aesthetics. Surface elements may be visually attractive, but they rarely capture the deeper meanings that give traditions their enduring relevance.Another principle that guided the project was the importance of translation rather than replication. Breathscape does not attempt to reproduce Traditional Chinese Medicine in its original form. Instead, it seeks to reinterpret ideas about rhythm, balance, and cyclical awareness in ways that resonate with contemporary life. The team believes that respectful adaptation often creates more meaningful dialogue than literal preservation.Perhaps the most transferable lesson from the project is the recognition that every culture contains sophisticated ways of understanding relationships between humans, nature, and time. Designers working with indigenous knowledge, philosophical traditions, or local crafts can benefit from approaching these systems with empathy and openness rather than seeking immediate solutions.For Yefan Liu, Fan Tang, and Ziyu Chen, design is ultimately an act of listening. The role of the designer is not to speak on behalf of traditions, but to create conditions in which their wisdom can continue evolving and finding relevance within new contexts. In that sense, innovation and heritage are not opposing forces but partners in an ongoing conversation across generations.