Interview with Yingzhe Shi, Founder of Quanting InnoLab, China

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Yingzhe Shi

Yingzhe endows life with meaning that translates great designs to the essence of life itself, where science and philosophy meet.



Interview with the 2021 MUSE Design Awards Winner - Yingzhe Shi

1Please give us a brief bio of yourself and your design background.

Starting to learn painting in my childhood, I am good at various painting techniques (sketching, oil painting, watercolor etc.), and with my great curiosity about the world, I keep exploring and looking for the ultimate meaning of aesthetics and design. After graduation, I mainly work on interior design of architecture, and also dabble in the fields of architectural, graphic, fashion and stage design. In creation, I have always been exploring modern representations with the unique identity of Quanting based on local culture.

I am Shi Yingzhe, a design hoping to keep breaking boundaries and innovating.

The experience of learning fashion design as an undergraduate in the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology makes me highly sensitive to fashion information, and strong curiosity triggers my great interest in the field of cross design. After graduation, I spent more than ten years working on the field of space design, and pursued further study in the School of Architecture of the Central Academy of Fine Arts.

Now, I am dedicated to exploring contemporary representations with the unique identity of Quanting, based on local culture.

2What made you become/why did you choose to become a designer/artist?

My love for art, interest in solving problems, and desire to tell my ideas to the world.

3Tell us more about your business/company, job profile, and what you do.

Shi Yingzhe, Quanting InnoLab, Founder/Design Director.

Quanting is a knowledge innovation design company specializing in driving business strategy with service design.

We focus on multiple innovative fields such as business upgrades, urban renewal, cultural creation and tourism, and links multiple subjects of design like brand, spatial, visual and product design on this basis. We are looking forward to creating a design language integrating local Chinese expressions and trends in the age of globalization, to help clients improve their business value while showing the lingering charm of traditional culture.

Quanting has a young team in continuous iteration and growth. While sticking to our idle of design, we also keep trying self-renewal, in the hope of establishing our own way of work, model of creation and design language. We don’t want to rush into a definition of ourselves, as our future is promising.

4What does “design” mean to you?

For me, “design” endows life with meanings, which equal to science and philosophy points directly at the essence of life.

5What’s your favorite kind of design and why?

My favorite is “minimalist design”, as the world is becoming more and more complicated, and design needs to tell us it’s time to do subtraction.

6To you, what makes a “good” design?

It can give us “good” experiences and impacts, and properly and tactfully control the “degree”.

7Describe your design style and its main characteristics.

It is increasingly embodied in views of the world and nature brought by Chinese culture, focusing on dialogue between design and nature, and it is harmonious, self-consistent rather than opposed to nature, skilled use of spatial forms to create an experience of philosophical thinking, and rustic texture to replace exquisite materials.

8Tell us about your design process.

First, I usually start with reasoning, and perceive a lot of things (the site, business background, customer demand, cultural background), to make myself more sensitive and immersed in information.

Second, find the most proper entry point (design expressions, creative ideas, etc.)

Last, print an original information drawing to scale; draw sketches and manuscripts with pen and paper (usually butter paper and a thick fine point); properly color them; mark dimensions, materials and detailed construction, and then make drawings on the computer.

9Do you think your country and its cultural heritage has an impact on your design process?

As I grow older, my country and its cultural heritage have an increasingly great impact on me, and have become a core source of power for my design now.

10Congratulations! As the winner of the 2021 MUSE Design Awards, what does it mean to you and your company and team to receive this award distinction?

I’d like to thank the judging panel for your recognition! For me and my team, it means our expression and practice of Chinese views of nature over the years are affirmed, which makes us so encouraged and motivated.

11Can you explain a bit about the winning work you entered into the 2021 MUSE Design Awards, and why you chose to enter this project?

It expresses meanings in the forms of natural things by means of design, and it is integrated with the natural philosophy of China, as well as influenced by thoughts of several Japanese design masters. For target groups of the project, I think it is a really interesting experience.

12What was the biggest challenge with this project?

The biggest challenge with this project was the three-storied landscape stairs in the atrium.

13How has winning an Award developed your practice/career?

Winning the award is external verification and recognition of my career, and can be a guidepost on my way ahead.

14What makes your country specifically, unique in the design industry?

The speed of prosperous development and courage in innovation.

15Where do you see the evolution of design industry going over the next 5-10 years?

Design plays an increasingly important role in a whole project, and is valued more by clients, because the power of design if used properly will bring more core values to the project.

The boundary of design will be constantly broken, and design will be more broadly defined.

16If you were a student entering this industry or an aspiring MUSE Design Awards submitter, what advice would you give them?

Do what you think is right.

17What resources would you recommend to someone who wants to improve their skills in the design industry?

Open online video, education and learning platforms; they break educational barriers and bring equal access to information, and we should make good use of these valuable and accessible resources.

18Who has inspired you in your life and why?

Everyone in my life inspires me in design, because everyone is wise enough and you just need to open your keen “eyes”.

19What is your key to success? Any parting words of wisdom?

Continuous learning.



Winning Entries

BEITANG HOT SPRING VILLAGE LIFESTYLE PAVILION, SHENYANG | 2020

Interview with Yingzhe Shi, Founder of Quanting InnoLab, China

This project is located in the Shenbei New District of Shenyang City, designed for the key state-owned Shengyang enterprise Zhongcheng...
(read more at MUSE Design Awards)


Quanting InnoLab


Quanting is a knowledge innovation design company specializing in driving business strategy with service design.

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