The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu na Yen Chang Chen

ʻO The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu na Yen Chang Chen he mea lanakila hanohano loa o ka 2026 A' Design Award Gula ma ka Māhele Hoʻokūkū Hoʻolālā Hoʻolaha, Kūʻai Aku a me Kamaʻilio.

GulaHoʻolaha· 2026

The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu

na Yen Chang Chen

Mea Kūʻai: Yuan Ze University

Mea Lanakila A' Design Award Gula ma ka Māhele Hoʻolaha

46,801

Mea Lanakila i Hōʻoia ʻIa

Hōʻoia i ke Kūlana Makana no #178404

Nānā ma A' Design Award Hoʻolaha Nūhou Hōʻailona Makana

Nā Waihoʻoluʻu

Ka Hoʻolālā

E Pili Ana iā The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu

Ua ho‘olālā ‘ia ka Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu no ka ho‘ololi ‘ana i kekahi hi‘ohi‘ona ku‘ipololei o ka mo‘omeheu kaulana o Taiwana i kēia au i mea mo‘omeheu ho‘opā‘ia. Ma muli o ka ho‘oulu ‘ia e kekahi hanana pūnaewele i ‘ike nui ‘ia e hui pū ana i ka ‘aka, ka henehene, a me ka ‘ōlelo pili kaiaulu, ke ‘imi nei kēia papahana i ke ‘ano e hiki ai ke unuhi ‘ia ka ‘ōlelo kama‘āina i loko o ka ho‘olālā huahana. Ma o ka ho‘opili ‘ana i ka mo‘omeheu kikoho‘e a me ka ‘ike kino, mālama ka ho‘olālā i ka ho‘omana‘o mo‘omeheu, ho‘oikaika i ke komo ‘ana o ka lehulehu, a hā‘awi i ala hiki ke loa‘a no ka no‘ono‘o ‘ana i ka ‘ike pono‘ī kūloko a me ka hō‘ike hui pū ‘ana.

Ka Hoʻomaikai

E Pili Ana i ka A' Design Award Gula

Ua lanakila ka hoʻolālā The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu i ka A' Design Award Gula, he ʻike hoʻohanohano nui loa i hāʻawi ʻia i nā hoʻolālā pae mua, kupaianaha a kūʻokoʻa. He mau hana hou loa, ʻike maka a nani hoʻolaʻa nā lanakila Gula e hōʻike ana i ka ʻuhane akamai, ka naʻauao a me ka mākau o kā lākou poʻe hoʻolālā. Manaʻo ʻia ʻo ka hoʻolālā The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu he mea hoʻokumu i hoʻomaikaʻi nui ʻia, e hoʻokumu ana i nā ʻano hou, he nui, e hāʻawi ana i ka waiwai ʻaʻole i ʻike ʻia ma mua. ʻO kēia hoʻolālā i lanakila i ka A' Design Award Gula he papahana kupaianaha, mahalo ʻia e hāʻawi i ka pōmaikaʻi nui a hoʻoneʻe i nā palena o ka hana noʻeau, ka ʻepekema, ka hoʻolālā a me ka ʻenehana. Hoʻāla ka hoʻolālā The Kaobei Kī‘aha Ho‘olaha Mo‘omeheu i nā manaʻo makemake ikaika, hoʻāla i ka ʻiʻini, hoʻoulu i ka hana noʻeau a hoʻopūliki iā mākou.

Ma Hope o ka Hoʻolālā

ʻEke Nūhou

Nā hōʻoia, nā lālā hui a me nā kikoʻī ʻenehana i hāʻawi ʻia e ka mea hoʻolālā.

Nā ʻAno Kūʻokoʻa: The KaoBei Cup is a ceramic design that transforms vernacular language into a functional communication interface. It goes beyond conventional products by integrating language, object, and social interaction into a scalable cultural system. By materializing informal expressions, it creates a new form of engagement that connects everyday use with digital sharing and cultural participation.
Nā Ana a me ka Hoʻopili: Dimensions: approx. 90 mm (W) × 90 mm (D) × 100 mm (H); capacity approx. 300 ml.
Material: high-fired porcelain with glazed finish.
Production: slip casting with decal transfer printing and kiln firing.
Packaging: recyclable paper box with protective insert.
Series-based design with multiple typographic variations ensuring consistency and scalability.
Nā Lepili: vernacular design, cultural communication, language-based design, product system, emotional interaction, typographic design, social engagement, everyday object, cultural identity, design innovation
ʻEnehana Hana: The KaoBei Cup is produced using ceramic slip casting with high-fired porcelain for durability and fine detail. The vernacular typography is developed through iterative graphic translation and applied using precision decal printing and kiln firing. The process integrates linguistic research, visual abstraction, and material prototyping to ensure consistency across series production.
Pilikia Hoʻolālā: The main challenge was translating informal vernacular language into a culturally acceptable and functional design without losing its original tone. Balancing humor, sensitivity, and readability required careful iteration. Another difficulty was standardizing non-structured expressions into consistent visual forms for production. The project addressed these through linguistic analysis, typographic refinement, and prototyping, ensuring both authenticity and scalability.
Noiʻi: This project is qualitative design research exploring how vernacular language can be transformed into product-based communication. The objective is to materialize everyday expressions into interactive objects. Methods include linguistic observation, visual translation, and prototyping. Data were collected from daily speech and digital communication patterns. Tested through real-world use in cultural contexts. Results show increased engagement and sharing. Insights reveal language can function as a cultural interface, impacting design, communication, and cultural industries.
Hoʻoulu Manaʻo: The KaoBei Cup is inspired by the everyday vernacular expressions widely used in contemporary communication, particularly those shaped by digital culture. These phrases, often casual, humorous, and emotionally expressive, have evolved into a shared linguistic system reflecting how people interact and connect in daily life.

The project explores how language can move beyond text and speech to become a tangible cultural medium. By transforming commonly spoken expressions into physical objects, the design materializes intangible communication and repositions it within everyday use.

The inspiration also emerges from the contrast between informal language and formal cultural contexts. Expressions that are typically considered trivial or marginal are recontextualized into designed objects, creating a dialogue between everyday culture and institutional spaces. This approach has been applied in museum and social communication settings, where the design enables audiences to engage with cultural content through familiar language and interactive experience.

Ultimately, the project is driven by the idea that design can translate ordinary language into a shared cultural interface, allowing people to express emotions, build connections, and reflect collective memory through everyday objects.
Ka Lōʻihi o ka Papahana: The project started in 2024 in Taiwan and was completed in early 2025. It was implemented in museum retail and social media contexts, where it was presented as part of cultural promotion initiatives. The design continues to be developed and expanded as a series-based product system.
Kaʻina Hana: Users interact with the Kao Bei Cup through daily use, where each printed phrase expresses a specific emotion or attitude. The cup functions as a conversation starter, allowing users to communicate indirectly through language embedded in the object. Its interaction extends beyond physical use to social sharing, enabling engagement across both personal and digital contexts.