Wednesday afternoon was the first hot day in San Diego, fitting, as 31 leading designers, luminaries, educators and diplomats traveled in from China to visit “Survey Select.” One year before, San Diego AIGA had sent a caravan of representatives to visit the design scene throughout China — Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. My good friend and important ambassador to the San Diego community, Bennett Peji played considerate host and moderator.
The 31 designers moved through “Survey Select” with their cameras and business cards kindly introducing themselves and exchanging printed materials. I gave everyone a “Ultra” zine featuring the villains and superhero robots of Ultra Man. To me this was a symbol of the rapid economic development of China, much like the robots photographed by Tim Mantoani and illustrated by Joel Nakamura amongst the brightly colored pages of my designed creation.
And to let you know how small the world truly is, Bi Xue-feng is one of my favorite designers from China, who ended up visiting today. I have been familiar with his work from the long commute to print my books in Shenzhen and Hong Kong, as his design style is very tactile, utilizing texture and well-placed fonts in his works. Thankfully, Bi Xue-feng and I traded our designed creations, and “Yes!” this will be placed in the Murphy archives.
“Survey Select” has serviced as a community space to many kind people over the past few weeks. It has been an honor to educate, share and inspire over 2400 visiting guests from all over the world. It is a historic gathering as artisans from all genres have participated in workshops, shared their ideas and presented their films. Today was a fun day and another example of the important nature of “Survey Select” and its community spirit within the creative minds from China.