杨灿Sunny

深圳国际交流学院届毕业生

入读美国罗德岛设计学院

几个月前，美国平面设计协会AIGA高级编辑EmilyGosling对罗德岛设计学院RISD的校友杨灿CanYang进行了采访，并在网站EyeonDesign上发表了有关Yang的介绍。

这篇文章将新兴设计师杨灿的作品描述这“instantlybeguiling”引人入胜，并赞赏其将汉字和罗马字母进行融合，以及在真诚和嬉闹之间巧妙转换的表达方式。

年，还在深圳国际学院就读的杨灿利用暑假时间，参加了美国罗德岛设计学院的大学先修课程，主要着眼于雕塑的学习。由此经历的激发，她在第二年大学申请时毫不犹豫地选择了罗德岛这所顶尖设计院校。最初她一门心思想要学习纯艺术，后来选择了平面设计这个决定让她自己也有点意外。

她的教授LUCINDAHITCHCOCK评价她：Can的风格非常个性化、非传统。在作品的形式、语言和物质性上面，她从来都是大胆的。

杨灿说：“我爱画画，喜欢动手，我想推动自己去尝试更多新鲜的东西。在选择平面设计之前，我没有任何数字技能的，甚至连Photoshop都不会用。”

当杨灿投身这一领域，拿起工具时，她试着将它们运用到自己的点子里面去，和系里系外的同学们的交流总能让她的视觉语言能力得到不少的锤炼和提升。

罗德岛的求学生涯即将结束，杨灿也满心期待回到中国，在一些艺术书展上出售她的电子杂志和一些艺术家的书，比如在上海新办的Unfold。如果一切顺利，她将利用一段时间去伦敦皇家艺术学院进修美术硕士学位，通过学习将平面设计和其他媒介有机结合起来，并品味不同的文化。

“我喜欢有难度的事情，不顾困难一往无前才能让我走得更远。”

AIGA报道原文：ReadytoPushForward

PlayfulworkbygraduatingseniorCanYang18GDseamlesslyblendsEasternandWesternmotifs.杨灿将中西图案无缝融合于作品之中

WhenGraphicDesignseniorCanYang18GDfirstbeganfollowingtheAmericanInstituteofGraphicArts(AIGA)onInstagramlastyear,shewonderediftheorganizationmightsomedaypostanimageofherwork.Instead,afewmonthsagoSeniorEditorEmilyGoslingreachedouttoherforaninterviewthatledtoawonderfulprofileaboutYangonAIGA’swell-readEyeonDesignsite.

Describingtheemergingdesigner’sworkas“instantlybeguiling,”thepiecepraisesher“gorgeousjuxtapositionofChinesecharactersandRomanlettering.Yang’smodeofexpressionisonethatveersneatlybetweensincerityandplayfulness,”Goslinggoesontopointout.“Herprojectsfrequentlymarryautobiographicalelementswithhistoricalandtheologicalinvestigations,aswellasmusingsonwiderideaslikegenerationaldifferencesorfailure.”

TheinteractiveFailurismManifestoencouragesviewerstodrawafortunereassuringthemthatfailureisOK.

YangfirstcametoRISDfromChinaintoattendthesummerPre-Collegeprogram,whereshefocusedonsculpture.Flooredbytheexperience,sheappliedforundergraduateadmissionthefollowingyear.WhenshearrivedasaFoundationstudent,sheinitiallyexpectedtomajorinoneofthefinearts,sosurprisedevenherselfbyoptingforGraphicDesigninstead.

“Canhasaverypersonalandunconventionaldesignstyle.Sheisfearlessinthewaysheconsidersform,languageandmaterialityinherwork.”PROFESSORLUCINDAHITCHCOCK

“Ilikepaintingandusingmyhands,soitwasabigjump,”saysYang.“ButIwantedtopushmyselftotrysomethingthatwasbrandnewtome.BeforeIchoseGraphicDesign,Ididn’thaveanydigitalskills—Ididn’tevenknowhowtousePhotoshop.”

AsYangpickedupthetoolsofthediscipline,shebeganapplyingthemtoheruniquepointofview,workingwithfacultymembersandotherstudentstodevelopandhonehervisuallanguage.“Canhasaverypersonalandunconventionaldesignstyle,”saysGraphicDesignDepartmentHeadLucindaHitchcock.“Sheisfearlessinthewaysheconsidersform,languageandmateriality,andblendslanguagesandculturesseamlesslyinherwork.”

YangwithProfessorLucyHitchcock,whoheadstheGraphicDesigndepartment杨灿和平面设计系主任LucyHitchcock教授合影

Theadmirationgoesbothways.YangappreciatesHitchcock’sgenerousfeedbackandsays,“she’salwaystryingtopushmefurther.”Theopendialogueshe’sabletohavewithallofherprofessorstooksomegettingusedto,thesenioradds.“InChinayouaresupposedtolookhumble,nodyourhead,agreewithyourteachers,”sheexplains.“HereIlearnedtodiscussmywork—tojumpinandsharemypointofview.”

“Throughfailurewefindnewempathy,intimacyandexpression.”GRAPHICDESIGNSENIORCANYANG

YangsaysthatallofherworkincorporatesamixofEasternandWesternmotifs.HerFailurismManifesto,forexample,mixesChina’snationalyellowwithmillennialpinkandreflectsontheIChingasatoolfordivination.Italsocelebratesthenotionoflearningthroughfailure—acoretenetofthepedagogicalapproachatRISD.

“Throughfailurewefindnewempathy,intimacyandexpression,”saysYang.“Weshouldcelebrateglitches,bugs,applicationerrors,systemcrashes,clipping,aliasing,distortion….Noperfectworkcanbeamasterpiece.”

Failureremindsusthatourcontrolovertechnologyisanillusion,saysYang.

AsherRISDexperiencedrawstoaclose,YangislookingforwardtoreturninghometoChinaandsellingherzinesandartist’sbooksatartbookfairslikethenewlycreatedUnfoldinShanghai.Ifallgoesaccordingtoplan,she’lltakeabitoftimeoffandthenpursueanMFAattheRoyalCollegeofArtinLondon,whereshehopesto