Avoiding a ship wreck

In 1998 a wreck containing the remains of a ship hewn of teak stitched together with coconut fibres was found off the coast of Singapore by a group of local fishermen diving for sea cucumbers. The ship was a dhow, an Arabian shipping vessel, constructed in the 800s AD and contained a vast cargo of over 70,000 pieces of pottery as well as intricate vessels of silver and gold. The pottery is representative of a vast range of historic kilns that stretched across China. Amongst the findings were bowls made in Changsha, a city deep in Hunan province, decorated with fish, flowers, birds and mountains; pottery from the famous Gongxin kilns with beautiful blue patterns using cobalt mined in Iran; and fine dishes glazed in the famous celadon green colour from the Yue kilns.

Although it is not known exactly what happened to the ship, as it was found very far from its expected route, it’s likely that a storm forced it off track where it hit the?Bitu Hiram (or ‘black rock’) reef it was found near. Now situated at the Asian Civilisations Museum in Singapore, scholars have studied this vast cache of wares and formed a new picture of the ancient trade routes and cross-cultural collaborations. The Tang Shipwreck (or Tang Treasures) is named as such as it is the single largest discovery of Tang dynasty artefacts found in one location outside of China and historic evidence that Singapore has been a global centre of trade for 1100 years. The pottery was bound for present day Iran and Iraq, meant for an elite clientele that would use these pieces to showcase their status and wealth. In 830AD, Asia was dominated by two great powers: China under the Tang dynasty and the Abbasid Caliphate in West Asia. Craftsmen from all over China were experimenting with glazes and patterns that would appeal to a market on the other side of the world. On the pottery, swirling decorations and Islamic patterns co-mingle with Chinese motifs and styles. The designs and vast quality of goods are a testament to the power and influence of cross-cultural collaboration.?

Last week, together with a group of 57 design and nursing students from four capital cities in Australia, we toured through Singapore and immersed ourselves in the sights, sounds and tastes of the region. We then set them with the task of collaborating with a further 52 design and nursing students from Singapore to create new and innovative solutions to the challenges associated with designing for individuals with disabilities. It has been a herculean task to get such a large and diverse group to work together and at times our cross-disciplinary group of teachers have been stretched to our limit trying to inspire, support and move the students forward. Group members were tired and stressed trying to get all of their work done in an intensive design sprint that lasted just five days. There were misunderstandings and issues with group dynamics which led to tears and frustrations. Despite the challenges, this colossal task has rendered something magical - all groups have come together to create innovative solutions to the challenge posed and ultimately have learned the power of cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary collaboration. We celebrated with a party in which everyone had a laugh and danced together in a large conga-line.?

In many ways, a study tour represents the voyage of the traders of years past – collecting designs and ideas from across the world to bring back to inspire the imagination of those in their home country. At times our ‘Design for Change: Design Sprint’ ‘dhow’ felt like it might run aground on a reef,?however, we navigated through the worst of the storms and our students have brought back a vast collection of ideas and inspiration that we know will help them to inform better solutions, with great empathy, that have potential to change and vastly improve the lives of those living with disabilities in Australia and beyond.?