yamengli.co.za

Storyverse

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:29:49 +0000

Currently in development, seeking funding.

Watch this space!

Airdog | Interactive sport gear

Mon, 16 May 2011 18:09:38 +0000

Together with my team mate at Domus Academy, we created a concept of interactive experience dedicated to snowboarders, skateboarders and BMX riders, its called Airdog.

Airdog is also a brand that makes helmets that go a step further than head protection: they can make those who wear them famous. How? The AIRDOG helmet is a special helmet with embedded tag technology inside the cool graphics on the helmet, and the AIRDOG application will immediately recognize you when you wear the helmet. When your friend record you doing jumps with the AIRDOG app, the media will instantaneously feed the user profile with his videos and data and allow him to receive audio & profile with the built-in headphones of the AIRDOG helmet. Also, we have a AIRDOG website which promotes live interaction between “starified” snowboarder/skateboarder/BMX riders (AIRDOGGERS) and a virtual audience sharing similar interests (FOLLOWERS).

AIRDOG also makes sticker tags for sport gears inspired by the same helmet and application technology allowing any application user to access information about an AIRDOGGER and reciprocally, allowing an AIRDOGGER to disseminate his own profile information through the stickers on his gears.

Below: website designs for the Airdog brand and its community page.

Eco-system map

Tech specs

Production value/ value of resources

Kickstarter funding

Open-innovation

Personally responsible for: creative direction, graphic design, animation, video & sound editing, interface design & website design.

Collaborated with others on: research, conceptual development, visual branding, scenario generation

Was not responsible for: 3D modelling, logo design

Team member: Gozde Elbeyli, Juan Pablo Giraldo, Caroline Fraser, completed at Domus Academy in Milano, Italy.

Lampadina_interactive desk lamp

Mon, 14 Feb 2011 13:58:20 +0000

This interactive prototype was a collaboration with Roman Klemencov (Lithuania), Charles Lee-Thorp(South Africa) and myself, completed at Domus Academy in Milano, Italy.

We were tasked with imagining a modernization of the Achille Castiglioni’s “Lampadina” lamp using the Arduino electronics prototyping platform.

The lamp is also being exhibited next to Castiglioni’s original lamp at this year’s Salone del Mobile in Milan.

Exhibiting alongside the original Lampadina at Studio Castiglioni, during the Salone del Mobile, 2011, Milan.

Personally responsible for: animation, video editing, prototyping

Collaborated with others on: research, conceptual development, prototyping

Was not responsible for: programming

See the prototyping process here.

Data visualization- Design research

Sat, 25 Dec 2010 23:44:19 +0000

Design research was the topic of this particular workshop.

We looked into the area of learning agency, which in a nutshell, means an agent / tool that aims to better the way people learn in remote locations.

This map is a summary of the research we have done and solutions found in this area for distance learning.

Below: an earlier version of the research visualised.

Personally responsible for: creative direction, graphic design, visualising data.

Collaborated with others on: research, conceptual development, scenario generation

Team: Gozde Elbeily, Yameng Li, Nicole Neuberger, Pietro Naoni, Isil Uzum.

MapAlly_ interactive travel journal

Sun, 05 Dec 2010 22:23:32 +0000

Featured on The Creator’s Project.

MapAlly conceptualized an application that is inspired by the idea of a travel journal. Our vision was to give the users/travellers a chance to personalise their journey into a graphical map, in which they can create, customize, print and share. The app allows them to send their graphical map to friends and family as a post card or have it as a poster print. The application is enabled with technical features of an iPad, such as the accelerometer, tilt sensor and GPS system; it also let the user connect with Google Calendar and Weather in order to have a very up-to-date visual representation of their journey.

The experience is fully customisable in every sense. The map styles and themes come in a selection of styles such as pixel art, asian landscape, vector style, and many more.

The users can choose the style and theme that they prefer, and when icons are being inserted into the map to represent cities, mountains, clouds, sun, etc, these icons can either be chosen from a ready-made array of icons, or the user can also create his/her own icons, using the drawing plugins that have already been built into the app.

See system map below:

MapAlly from Yameng Li on Vimeo.

Personally responsible for: creative direction, animation, interface design

Collaborated with others on: research, conceptual development, visual branding, icon & map design, scenario generation

Was not responsible for: 3D modelling

Team: Pietro Naoni, Vanessa Schauer. Isil Uzum & meyself.

Wheelz for Realz _ interactive installation

Fri, 05 Nov 2010 20:43:05 +0000

*Featured in the Creators Project.

This project is a collaboration between Jessica Bala, Marco Ghezzi and myself.

Wheelz for Realz is inspired by an organisation in the UK called Re-Cycle, which aims to promote recycling old bicycle and bike parts, in order to supply poor African countries with means of transportation. We proposed to create an interactive installation, which involves using old bicycle parts.

Below: image showing the different interactive modalities of the bicycle parts.

The installation requires the users to collaboratively use the bicycle parts as navigational tools through the contents of the installation. The contents consist of images, videos, tutorials and the bicycle community page, and the users need to interact with the parts in order to make a video play. For example, one should push the pedal to start playing a video, or spin the wheel to fast forward/rewind the videos, but one person alone cannot fully navigate the content, as the nature of the installation lies in the interaction & co-operation between viewers. Essentially, the installation serves as a low-cost communication tool, to teach the users about recycling old bicycles, and engage them in a kind of dialogue within the installation, thereby changing the role of the viewer from passive to active.

Wheelz4Realz from Yameng Li on Vimeo.

Personally responsible for: creative direction, animation, video editing, interface design, logo design

Collaborated with others on: research, conceptual development,scenario generation

Was not responsible for: 3D modelling

Loeries Award Event graphics

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:19:38 +0000

Since 2008, I have been working with Wicked Pixels for the on-stage screen animation for the annual Loeries Award. For 2010, I was lucky enough to conceptualize, art direct and produce the entire animation package for the year’s event. There were over 50 animation sequences so these are just a few of my favorite ones.

All done in After Effects. It’s a tribute to typography and color. Enjoy.

Tyred customised chair

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 19:01:55 +0000

In collboration with Tyred, made for Design Indaba Conference 2010, Cape Town, South Africa.

Tyred chairs are made from recycled tyres and each of the “Designer’s Set” is one of a kind piece painted by designers and artists in South Africa.

In 2010. I was one of the lucky 10 to be customizing one of these chairs. Following the brief of “Neo-Africa”, my execution was a tribute to Roy Lichtenstein.

See some process pictures below.

Portraits and Miscellaneous

Sun, 30 May 2010 21:32:53 +0000

An ongoing print series i’m doing on people, and interesting characters I come across while browsing the old Life Magazine.

Prints available on requests from A3 to A0.

Poetree_animated album promo

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:37:48 +0000

A talented friend of mine Rus Nerwich asked me to make a animated promo for his new album Under the Poetree.

Check out the video below..

Design: Adam Shear

Art direction & animation: Yameng Li

Sound design: Rus Nerwich