Two industrial designers have invented a modular stamp that can be combined to create traditional Chinese characters in artistic fonts.
Germany’s Red Dot Design Awards this month granted the stamp the “Best of the Best” award in the product design category.
The stamp was designed by Wang Chieh-ying (王介盈) and Wang Man-lin (王蔓霖), both graduates of the Oriental Institute of Technology.
Photo courtesy of Wang Man-lin
The two began the project last year by designing two fonts — Faguang (發光, “luminescent”) and Touming (透明, “transparent”) — which are suitable for reproduction with the stamps, Wang Man-lin said.
They consolidated the eight strokes of classical calligraphy into six movable units, which allow a user to customize the stamp by assembling the pieces into different characters, she said.
With the streamlined six-stroke system, the stamps encourage users to play around with them, she said, adding that many children and adults have enjoyed toying with the stamps at Kaohsiung’s Pier-2 Art Center.
The system is intuitive and many people can create characters without being taught how to use it, she said.
The design last year also won NT$300,000 in Taiwan’s Golden Pin Concept Design Award, which the two donated to South Sudanese refugees, Wang Man-lin said.
The two are looking forward to participating in the Junior Award category of the Red Dot awards, which has prize money of 10,000 euros (US$11,925), she said.
Taiwanese have a responsibility to preserve and promote traditional Chinese, often considered one of the most beautiful scripts in the world and a shared piece of cultural heritage between Taiwan and Hong Kong, she said.
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