Design is not merely a form of artistic expression—it is an ever-evolving process shaped by the continuous fusion and collision of and creativity. As a designer, I was honored to be invited in 2016 to participate in the poster creation project for Germany’s Tanzjahr 2016 (Dance Year 2016), a nationwide dance promotion initiative organized by the German Federal Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes). The project aimed to raise public awareness of dance as an art form and to foster the diverse development of dance within German society.
This project challenged the conventional language of graphic design and marked an innovative attempt to integrate digital technology into artistic expression. Although the posters were initially presented in the traditional medium of silkscreen printing—retaining the tactile quality and ceremonial essence of the craft—I viewed this as a starting point for deeper visual exploration. Beginning with the static poster, I gradually explored dynamic visuals and interactive experiences, ultimately developing a real-time generative system that allowed for user customization. This not only gave the work a new form of life but also offered the audience an unprecedented immersive experience.
Background: Tanzjahr 2016 (Germany’s Dance Year 2016)
Tanzjahr 2016 was a nationwide initiative jointly promoted by the German Federal Cultural Foundation and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM). Its mission was to increase public engagement with dance and encourage interdisciplinary collaboration between dance and other cultural forms. Throughout the year, a wide array of performances, exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and interdisciplinary projects were held across Germany, showcasing the multifaceted expression of dance in a contemporary artistic context.
One of the key visual communication efforts during Tanzjahr 2016 was the “Tanzjahr 2016 Poster Project.” This initiative invited 16 designers and artists from different countries to create posters on the theme of dance. The organizers imposed a unique creative constraint: each designer was permitted to use only three basic shapes (a semicircle, a circle, and a rectangle) and two colors (Pantone fluorescent orange and black). These minimalistic design parameters encouraged participants to express the rhythm, movement, and visual tension of dance through abstract graphic forms. This experimental setup not only stimulated creative visual approaches but also made the poster series a benchmark in the integration of dance and graphic design.
In response to these constraints, I drew inspiration from the Chinese calligraphic character for “dance” (舞), combining the dynamic aesthetics of traditional calligraphy with a modern design vocabulary.
In the initial conceptual phase, I used a brush to write the character “舞,” capturing the rhythm and motion of the brushstrokes. In the subsequent digital phase, I used the three prescribed geometric shapes—semicircles, circles, and rectangles—as the basic structural units to reconstruct the character. I primarily utilized semicircles, arranged in a dot-matrix pattern with precise layout, to rebuild the form of “舞” in a way that retained the essence of its calligraphic roots while expressing a sense of rhythm and musicality. The composition visually resembles flowing musical notes, evoking a sense of motion within a still image.
This unique visual reconstruction infused the work with both traditional cultural spirit and contemporary artistic tension. The transformation of geometric elements within a structured framework not only reflected the dancer’s physical rhythm but also symbolized the flow of music, giving the static poster a vivid sense of dynamism. This design approach expanded the expressive capacity of traditional visual language and laid the foundation for subsequent explorations in motion graphics and interactivity.
The final poster was produced using silkscreen printing, a deliberate choice to preserve the tactile richness of handcrafted print techniques. This physical realization granted the digital composition new life within a tangible medium. The integration of traditional printmaking with the interplay of calligraphy and modern graphic language resulted in a multi-sensory experience, engaging both sight and touch.
As technology and media continue to evolve, I began to ask: Can such a design break beyond the two-dimensional plane to foster deeper engagement with viewers? How might technology be employed to “reshape” static visuals, endowing them with richer layers of expression and participation? These inquiries go beyond mere technical execution—they touch upon the essence of creation itself: form must serve content, and technology must serve expression. Only through this alignment can the fusion of technology and art truly endow a work with intellectual depth and experiential breadth.
1. The Classic Presentation of the Static Poster: Fusing Tradition with Modernity to Make the Poster “Come Alive”
At the initial stage of the project, I chose to present the poster using traditional silkscreen printing techniques. As a time-honored craft, silkscreen printing not only offers a distinctive tactile quality and artisanal warmth but also carries rich cultural heritage and artistic atmosphere. Its saturated colors and layered printing effects perfectly align with the core spirit of the dance festival—“art in motion”—imbuing the visual composition with a solemn yet rhythmic beauty.
In terms of graphic composition, I modernized the structure of the Chinese character for “dance” (舞) by reconstructing it using the three prescribed geometric shapes and two-color palette. Through precise arrangement of dots, lines, and planes, I created a rhythmic visual language that extended and amplified the dynamic essence of traditional calligraphy within the medium of silkscreen printing. The work retained the inner spirit of Eastern aesthetics while achieving visual innovation through modern design methods.
However, despite the strong visual impact and artistic expression of this version of the poster, its mode of communication remained static and unidirectional. The viewer’s experience was limited to passive observation, lacking deeper interaction and emotional engagement. It was precisely at this boundary of expression that I began to reflect: Could technology breathe multidimensional life into such traditional forms? Could we break the limitations of “static viewing” and transform the audience from mere observers into participants?
This line of questioning became the starting point for the next stage of design evolution, leading me to continually explore the possibilities of visual expression—from static to dynamic, from flat to interactive, and from fixed to customizable.
2. Introducing Motion: Making the Poster “Move”
With the continuous advancement of digital technology, I began exploring ways to transform the traditional static poster into a dynamic work of art. Utilizing image processing software and programming techniques, I reimagined the dancer’s form within the poster as a dynamic fading effect. Through motion trails, I created the visual impression of movement trajectories, assigning each geometric element a unique path and rhythm of motion and delay. This dynamic effect breathed new life into the previously static design, making the poster visually convey the rhythm, continuity, and fluidity of the dancer’s body.
This transformation into motion not only made the poster more vivid and engaging but also enhanced the viewer’s sense of immersion. As viewers observed the evolving visuals, they could feel the rhythm and atmosphere of the dance festival—no longer just a static display, but a living visual narrative in motion.
3. Interactive Design: Making the Poster “Sing”
As technology continued to evolve, I sought to further enhance the interactivity of the poster. By incorporating touchscreen technology, I enabled viewers to directly engage with the poster—touching various elements to alter their position and color. Each interaction dynamically changed the visual composition in real time, allowing users to generate unique visual outcomes with every touch and movement.
Moreover, I integrated sound into the poster design. When viewers touched different geometric shapes, they triggered distinct sound effects, even enabling them to compose their own musical sequences. This fusion of interactivity and audio-visual expression broke through the limitations of traditional static posters, transforming the piece into a multi-sensory art experience.
The audience was no longer a mere “spectator,” but became an active “participant.” Each interaction revealed a new facet or emotional tone of the poster, truly enabling a personalized artistic creation
4. Visual Reshaping with Artificial Intelligence: Enriching the Poster’s Visual Expression
With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, AI-driven visual reshaping—particularly its application in poster design—has greatly expanded the expressive power of visual elements. I employed AI design tools to quickly generate visual components based on brief text descriptions (prompts). For example, by inputting a phrase like “vivid multicolored fluid spheres,” the AI could instantly generate four material renderings in different styles. I also imported the original dance festival poster as a reference image, and the AI was able to automatically produce four variations with similar stylistic qualities.
This method of using prompts to generate personalized materials and visual effects not only improved creative efficiency but also allowed for greater diversity in visual style, independent of traditional manual design processes. With intelligent analysis and adjustable parameters, AI enables rapid iteration and precise fine-tuning of visuals, better meeting a range of design needs. Designers can now move from initial concept to final output in a much shorter timeframe, significantly increasing both flexibility and accuracy in the creative process.
By integrating AI with existing works, the original design concepts are preserved, while new layers of visual richness and style variations are introduced. This results in more distinctive and personalized designs. Such an innovative workflow not only drastically shortens the design cycle but also offers designers a broader array of creative possibilities—pushing the boundaries of artistic expression.
5. Highly Customizable Real-Time Generator: Breaking Creative Boundaries and Making the Poster “Personalized”
Ultimately, I decided to take the creative process to a new level of freedom by developing a real-time generator that supports user customization. This tool allows users to upload their own images and transform them into pixelated visuals. With built-in dynamic effects, users can freely adjust pixel shape, size, density, amplitude, and animation rhythm to create personalized visual outcomes.
This real-time generator not only provides designers with greater creative flexibility but also invites every user to participate in the artistic process as a means of self-expression. Design is no longer a closed, designer-led endeavor—it becomes an open, customizable artistic experience accessible to all.
This highly customizable design tool blurs the boundaries of creation, engaging a broader audience and allowing more people to take part in the design process. It breaks down the traditional separation between creator and viewer, making design a shared and inclusive act of expression.
https://cideaassociation.com/dance-test/
Conclusion: The Seamless Integration of Technology and Art
Through continuous experimentation and refinement with various technologies, my work has gradually evolved from a static poster into a dynamic, interactive, and even fully customizable form of art. With each integration of technology, the expressive dimensions of the poster were expanded, and the audience’s sense of participation and immersion was significantly enhanced. From the initial silkscreen-printed static design to dynamic imagery, sound interaction, touch-based feedback, and eventually to a user-customizable visual generator and AI-driven visual style transformation, this journey represents not just a technical evolution but a deepening of design thinking.
This creative process made me realize that the possibilities of modern design are no longer confined to traditional two-dimensional formats. Technological advancement has opened up infinite potential for artistic creation. The means of visual expression have shifted from unidirectional communication to multi-dimensional interaction, transforming design from a creator-centered process into an open platform for deep audience engagement. Especially with the support of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, design is no longer merely an outcome—it becomes an evolving process, a co-creative experience between humans and technology.
Yet, regardless of how technology advances, I remain committed to one core principle: technology should serve expression, and form should serve content. Only when technology empowers creativity—rather than replacing it—can design truly resonate with audiences and evoke deeper cultural and aesthetic reflection.
Looking ahead, design will no longer be a closed “work,” but an open “system”; no longer a singular expression from the creator, but a co-creation process involving multiple participants. In this evolving landscape, technology is not the end goal, but a medium that leads to deeper artistic experiences. By continually integrating technology with art, we can offer audiences richer, more layered sensory experiences, while simultaneously opening new perspectives and directions for the future of design.
Source: CIDEA Association – https://cideaassociation.com/dance/
Author: Li Xu
