From December 4 to 26, the 2021 Zhuhai International Design Week was held in Zhuhai through a combination of online and offline methods. As an academic support unit of the Design Week, Beijing Normal University School of Future Design hosted the main forum-Dean’s Dialogue and the parallel dialogue session themed on "Future Design and Creative Thinking" to promote the development of design education and boost the integration of design industry in the Greater Bay Area.
As the academic convener and host of Dean’s Dialogue, Gao Peng, Dean of the School of Future Design at Beijing Normal University, discussed the future development of art and design education as well as the new paradigms in aesthetic education and new ideas for talent cultivation in universities with Li Shuchun, Dean of the School of Fine Arts at Northeast Normal University, Wei Shaonong, Dean of the School of Design at East China Normal University, Li Shaobo, Dean of the School of Fine Arts at Hunan Normal University, and Luo Guang, Vice Dean of the School of Fine Arts at South China Normal University. "This Dean's Dialogue gathers the deans of art and design schools in teacher training colleges and universities in China to discuss the future development of art and design education in colleges and universities, searching for a new paradigm of art and design education. It is hoped that this Dean's Dialogue will enable the community to better understand the art and design students in teacher training colleges and universities," said Gao.
Wang Min, the academic convener of Zhuhai International Design Week Academic Committee and Distinguished Professor of Beijing Normal University, delivered a speech at the forum, expecting that this Dean's Dialogue could better promote the exchange and cooperation of talents in the Greater Bay Area.
In the parallel dialogue session, Gao Peng, Xu Ping and Tony Brown, members of the BNU School of Future Design Academic Committee, shared their views on the theme of "Future Design and Creative Thinking".
Zhuhai International Design Week is co-organized by Zhuhai Huafa Group, Beijing Gehua Group, Hong Kong Federation of Design Association and Macau Design Center under the guidance of Zhuhai Municipal People’s Government. It is the largest international professional design event in Zhuhai covering a wide range of industries. Since its foundation in 2018, Zhuhai International Design Week has attracted more than a thousand experts from various fields from over 20 countries and regions across the world for cross-border exchanges. Nearly two hundred exhibitors and more than 100,000 visitors have visited the exhibition. It has become a "business card for design" in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. In 2021, the Zhuhai International Design Week first combined the "online + offline" modes, with the forum and expo held online. It connects the traditional exhibitions with digital exhibitions by breaking through the previous on-spot limitations including time, region and venue.