Architecture – Zack Chia

Chips dont lie

Posted on January 25, 2017 by Zack Chia

Who doesn’t love booze with great company after work? We all do. And for the most part of it, beer always taste better with good food. Never mind the traditional pair up of beer with pastas or burgers, chips are still the best choice. Probably still the most popular choice for an after work soccer match with your homies! Now, Doritos have once again created something interesting. The Frito-Lay continues to amaze me with their Tostitos’s “Party Safe” bag. Wait a minute, did I just said party safe? Yes i did. That means you now party without the constant fear of driving home drunk.

The pack of chips is actually going to heighten your awareness of alcohol level as well as do the favour of getting you a decent ride home. Pretty nifty trick i did say.

A concept by Goodby Silverstein & Partners, the bag comes equipped with a device that is connected with a microcontroller. It is somewhat calibrated to detect alcohol from the person’s breath. Should the sensors detect alcohol presence, it immediately signals red and what you see is an image of a steering wheel! On top of that, an Uber code is created, indicating a message: “Don’t drink and drive”.

With near-field communication (NFC) technology, you can even tap the bag with your smartphone to activate the ride. With all the campaigns going on against drunk driving and Uber’s ongoing promotions, Tostitos are throwing n the $10 off deals during the period as well as after the Feb 5 Super bowl game. Well played.

Interior design with tea

Posted on November 29, 2016 by Zack Chia

Retail store interiors plays a significant role in helping to keep your customers staying engaged in the store. By now, it should be no surprise that most shoppers tend to return to a shop they purchased before, especially if it can connect with them emotionally. To do this, there must be an opportunity to spark that chemistry with these shoppers. Check out this tea shop in Vancouver, Canada.

Situated along the street, the facade is a beautiful blend of white and red cherry blossoms. The entire design direction is very much inspired by Japanese art, capitalising on the minimalist details that potentially forms into a differentiated tea-drinking experience. In this case, it does not matter if the customer is familiar with the cultures or equipped with the knowledge of Japanese tea-drinking. The customer will immediately be immersed into the entire experience.

Print that house

Posted on July 23, 2015 by Zack Chia

You gotta to be kidding. Assembling a house in 3 hours from 3D printing? Check out this ridiculously amazing technology from China. The Zhuoda Group managed to create a 200 square feet home from scratch in merely 3 hours. Although they have been very lip tight on the materials and technology for the built, it is nonetheless a display of awesome work from the Chinese company. It actually took the company only 10 days to concept and finish the project. With six printed modules consisting fractions like the living room, kitchen, bedroom, toilets and more, the house is not only quick to fix, but also enduring in nature. It is said to supposedly withstand fire, water and even earthquakes. Now that is something to reckon with. Not only is the cost of the project extremely manageable, it also bring 3D printing to a whole new level. Im starting to see more of how 3D printing will influence our future.

AirBnb Oslo Holmenkollen Ski design

Posted on March 22, 2015 by Zack Chia

Building extremely immersive brand experiences is the result of a combination between fusing the right physical and emotional elements. Take a look at Airbnb’s most recent work with interior professionals Melissa Hegge and Nina Holst, as they attempt to transform Oslo’s Holmenkollen Ski Jump to include a snazzy looking penthouse. The design direction takes inspiration from Nordic designs and incorporates a very exclusive rooftop terrace. The facade has a rather organic shape, leaving a very arresting impression under the light blue sky backdrop. With accommodations at a staggering 200 feet off ground, the layers of glass offers breathtaking view of the city. What a fantastic way to live! Check out these images of the beautiful interiors. Truly a work of art.

Awesome office

Posted on January 5, 2015 by Zack Chia

Many would remember how amazing Google’s office interiors were. Now let us take a look at Airbnb’s latest office in Portland, Oregon. Apart from their beautiful offices in Dublin and San Francisco, this new office resides in the Blagen Block Building in Old Town Chinatown and now acts as Airbnb’s North American Operational Headquarters. Office environments plays a critical role in establishing conducive working conditions. Do you want to work here?

Living on the edge

Posted on September 7, 2014September 8, 2014 by Zack Chia

I know I havent been catching up a lot on design stuffs. Not that I will, but this article I chance upon on DesignTaxi just had to come on to the blog. First thing that came to my mind, “Man, I want that!” A house so dangerously mounted on to the edge of the cliff! Check this house from the Southwest coast of Victoria, Australia. That view! At this point, the design had significantly outweighed practicality. The Cliff House, is designed by Modscape Concept in an attempt to answer to the amazing needs for an unique yet adventurous clientele. Definitely a very intense moment for those with a phobia for heights but a very outlandish way of living for those who truly appreciate heights! As you can see, the highest floor is basically designed for the vehicle while the different levels portray a different segment of the house. Interestingly, the house diverges down narrowing as it moves lower. One must be pondering how this structure can actually be securely mounted to the edge of the cliff. To answer that, the designers have used engineered steel pins to ensure security has not been compromised. Awesome!

POP amazing ART

Posted on January 10, 2014 by Zack Chia

There is always opportunity for creativity as long as we don’t stop ‘imaging things‘. I actually love a lot of nice installations that reverse public’s perceptions through provocative imagery. Most often or not, these visual works tend to create something out of another. Like in this case, Irish graffiti artist, Maser, transformed a gas station in Limerick City, Ireland into a beautiful art installation. Are you fond of huge art installations? This might just be your thing. He called it No.27 – A Nod to Ed Ruscha. It is very much an inspiration from pop artist Ed Rushca. It is pretty awesome I would say. For people who indulge and immerse in an artistic environment, they would definitely not miss this one. As much as I love activation and outdoor creative work, this really looks pretty amazing. Looks like this might be an idea for some creative campaign. Hmmm….

Maser said, “My work often boldly juxtaposes old and new, past and present in the architectural elements, the visual grammar and choice of pallet. I hope to create work that surprises people and questions their relationship with the familiar and the norm and also how dissociated we are from the space around us.”

Shanghai baby!

Posted on December 31, 2013December 31, 2013 by Zack Chia

Wow. I have been very selective in the kind of stuffs I wanna post on blog as there were really many cool stuffs today, and this really caught my attention. Shanghai is a cosmopolitain city and the fact that it has so many beautiful architectural structures just makes it even more compelling for me. Im an urban man. When I saw photos of the city taken with such depth and quality, I further reassured myself that Shanghai is one my next few destinations. Check out these photos by Wei Gensheng. Wei works as a crane operator on the the Shanghai Tower and mind you, he is an amateur photographer. These wonderful shoots were taken by him. Can you see how beautiful this city is from the ariel view? These pictures are mind blowing. I particularly love the picture with dense fluffy clouds shading the city below from the nice warm sun ray. Fantastic. Wooooot!

LEGO: Opera Sydney House

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Zack Chia

It’s the time of the year and if you haven’t bought anything lovely for your close ones, it is not too late! I know I have talked about how much affection I have for Lego bricks and I suppose I wont be stopping with just a few posts! Hehehe. Lego’s recent offering of the Sydney Opera House shouts out attention like no other. A beauty to behold and one that has got great fun building it. With almost a 3,000 bricks count, this marvelous spledor is huge and beautiful. This is a new release in addition to the already famous Lego Creator line. There are others which includes the Eiffel Tower as well as other interesting sets like the magnificent Taj Mahal. The Sydney Opera House had a previous release but came in a much much smaller scale of 270 brick count. This new set definitely deserves the attention and together with the intricate designs within the structure, it leaves one completely thrilled. Very cool and amazingly detailed. Check out the video to find out more from the designer himself as well as his creative rationale when designing the set.

Wedding in IKEA?

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Zack Chia

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Courtesy of Ikea China/Yu Studio

Nothing beats brand intimacy when it comes to building consumer relationships. Proclaiming your benefits and unique propositions blatantly, in hopes of eliciting greater brand recognition creates passive communications, which would never connect your brand with your consumers. There is never one fixed methodology when it comes to building a brand’s emotional attachment together with your consumers. Cultural differences create diversity in our society, and it is vital that the right approach be adopted to create the most impactful marketing initiatives. IKEA China is one of the few really amazing IKEA outlets that recognizes the needs and culture of the chinese market when it comes to retail marketing. And trust me, they completely nailed it. I refer to an article at Adage.com which features an article on a short interview with IKEA’s marketing director, Ms. Camilla Hammar. In the interview, Ms. Hammar explained how IKEA China has changed its approach towards the chinese shoppers and how they learn to accept their customers getting all too comfortable with their products.

Ms. Hammar: People literally getting into the beds, taking off their shoes, getting under the covers. Not just one person, but sometimes as a couple or with a child.

One of the most bizarre marketing initiative that IKEA China has rolled out, involves the in-store marriage ceremony of 3 couples! IKEA China has learn to understand the fact that great effective work requires not just great ideas and executions, it is also the knowledge of understanding the market you are trying to sell to. Check out more of the article here.