It’s a scam!

In modern society, brands and companies leverage on impulsive behaviours of consumers to sell their products. Luxury brands in particular, produce ordinary items disguised as “premium” products, then marking them up to exuberant prices. The ever obedient consumer can only wait by his wallet, ready to purchase the next big thing, whatever it may be. This breeds the social psychological problem of Affluenza, also known as “extreme materialism”.

A commentary on the absurdity of consumerism today, this project aims to help the viewer view spending from an objective, third person’s point of view. Infused with a sense of irony, it hopes to inspire more reflection on one’s “ridiculous” purchases, and perhaps a tighter grip on their wallet in the future.

The project will feature advertising styles of the 1800s, mainly encapsulating their nature of irony and deceit. This old school way of advertising ceases to exist in society today (or at least in ways which are far less succinct), as advertisers are more subtle with words they use due to increasing regulations tackling misrepresentation.

The Friendly Muse: A Design Student’s Wellbeing

Studying in a University is a crucial stage of many students’ lives. As they enter into tertiary learning and coping with adulthood, many will find themselves facing different stress on a daily basis. Cumulation of stress can lead to health issues and unhealthy symptoms that affects the wellbeing of students and learning experiences of students. NTU’s Student Wellbeing Centre (SWC) is thus set up for students to pick up resources or seek counselling to cope with everyday life issues. The SWC have however reported that students are not reaching out to them due to stigmatisation associated with mental health. ‘The Friendly Muse’ is thus proposed as  a concept branch service from SWC that focuses specifically on ADM students. Drawing from personal experience and that of fellow peers, the project investigates how to create a more relatable, approachable and contextualized experience for ADM students.