This March, two young faculty members from the School of Future Design (SFD) of Beijing Normal University (BNU) captured the national spotlight with their groundbreaking works at two of China’s most prestigious industry events, showcasing cutting-edge design exploration. Xu Dongliang unveiled his fashion work inspired by the national intangible cultural heritage of the maple incense dyeing culture of the Winding Family at the 2025 China International Fashion Week, redefining traditional fashion aesthetics through innovative design language. Zhou Tiange innovatively fused digital technology with music at the 2025 Music Technology Fusion Festival, demonstrating the infinite possibilities of the future of sound art.
Xu Dongliang: Reimagining Intangible Heritage at China Fashion Week
The 2025 China Fashion Week (Spring) opened on March 20 in Beijing and became a global showcase of themes of cultural confidence, Chinese aesthetics, sustainable innovation, and intangible cultural heritage revitalization. The nine-day event featured more than 160 shows and exhibitions from nearly 230 brands and 270 designers representing 12 countries, including Finland, Germany, and Italy.
At Fashion Week, inspired by the culture of maple incense dyeing, Xu Dongliang from the School of Future Design (SFD) of Beijing Normal University (BNU) created the fashion artwork “Rao Yan Rao Yu,” which is a fusion of oriental culture and modern aesthetics. Fusing Eastern cultural expression with contemporary aesthetics, the design of this series of works focuses on the order of cultural forms, the cultural diversity, and the balance between tradition and modernity. His works seek to transform traditional ethnic clothing art and aesthetic ideas into lifestyle products, reconnecting ancient craftsmanship with everyday life.
“We have been conducting long-term digital documentation, systematic research, and design innovation around fengxiang dyeing,” Xu explained. “Our aim is to achieve deep integration between cultural research, digital preservation, and fashion design.”
Through such initiatives, SFD advocates for modern reinterpretations of China’s rich artisanal traditions. SFD is committed to creating high-quality lifestyle products that embody humanistic values, fashion sensibilities, and cultural narratives, paving the way for the fashionable transformation of traditional handcraft.
Zhou Tiange: Digital Innovation at Music-Tech Festival
On March 13, the “Digi Muse—2025 Music-Tech Festival” kicked off at Shanghai Concert Hall, serving as a dynamic platform where cutting-edge technology meets musical artistry, empowering musicians to push the boundaries of digital music creation and foster the evolution of musical works.
Zhou Tiange, director of the Art and Technology Lab at SFD of BNU, captivated audiences with an immersive “human-machine improvisation” soundscape performance. Blurring the lines between performer and algorithm, Zhou’s work illustrated the evolving relationship between digital intelligence and auditory expression.
As a highlight of the festival, Zhou’s workshop “From Dunhuang Code to Jingdezhen Echo: Technology Empowering Artistic Archaeology and Soundscape Co-Creation” on March 22 offered a transformative journey through time and space. By merging Dunhuang music and dance with the material culture of Jingdezhen ceramics, Zhou created a digital archaeology theater blending ancient arts with cutting-edge technologies, including brainwave sensors, virtual gesture recognition, and deep learning.
In this experimental space, audiences transitioned from passive observers to active co-creators. Participants engaged in real-time sound generation via interactive platforms, building a shared soundscape rooted in collective memory and technological imagination.
These two trailblazing showcases highlight SFD’s role as a vanguard of cultural innovation and interdisciplinary education. By infusing traditional Chinese heritage with contemporary design thinking and digital technology, SFD continues to redefine how art, culture, and innovation converge in the 21st century.