Lab Future Construction: A New Language for Interstellar Communication

Yu-Chi Chen's Innovative Design Wins Silver in A' Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design Award 2022

The inspiration for Lab Future Construction came from the development of global networks. The creators sought to explore the civilizations of the universe from the perspective of an alien observer. By reconstructing current notes, signs, and symbols, they developed Hou-Ru Wen, a new language for communicating with other planets in outer space.

Lab Future Construction is unique in its approach to the concept of an exhibition. It abandons the traditional one-way narrative and instead focuses on the conversation between visitors and exhibition rooms. The exhibition transforms the differences between visitors and exhibition rooms, creating diversity in perspectives and various possibilities. This diversity is used to further construct the project's new language.

The realization of this design involved an exploration of the civilizations of the universe from the perspective of an alien observer. The designers reconstructed the current notes, signs, and symbols to develop Hou-Ru Wen. The design extends to the exhibition venue, website, and catalog, expressing the spirit of communication regardless of region.

The design of Lab Future Construction faced several challenges. The theme is related to the text language system, a complex and rigorous logical composition. The designers had to think about how to interpret the language of the universe and what rules to make. Through the understanding and observation of the origin of Earth's text, they translated unknown symbols into design language sinks, developing the Hou-Ru Wen language.

The project started in January 2021 in Taiwan and finished in May 2021, with the exhibition taking place in Taiwan in May 2021. The visual elements of Hou-Ru Wen mix the word structures of Phoenician and Berber and use Mandarin phonetic symbols as the spelling method for phonograms. The overall design referred to the layout of Sumer’s cuneiforms so that the writings are aligned with the bottom, which was also applied to all the visual identities.

Lab Future Construction was awarded Silver in A' Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design Award in 2022. The award is given to top-of-the-line, creative, and professionally remarkable designs that illustrate outstanding expertise and innovation. These designs, admired for their strong technical characteristics and splendid artistic skill, showcase a remarkable level of excellence and introduce positive feelings, amazement, and wonder.