Self-transcendence: Design Criticism in the 1928 Shanghai Exhibition of National Products

Abstract After establishing the Shanghai port in 1843, Western machine-made products inundated the Chinese consumer market, disrupting the local Chinese economic system. To foster the advancement of national industries, the Nanking nationalist government held the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Labour’s Exhibition of National Products in 1928, providing a platform for public discourse on the design of national products. This article analyses the progression of three representative types of early design criticism that emerged from the Exhibition of National Products. These criticisms examined the design’s economic benefits, responsiveness to cultural needs, and influence on shaping social consensus. Their progressive development can be characterized as a form of self-transcendence, indicating a move by critics beyond past limited understandings of the value, sphere of influence, and design’s role in society. Their focus transitioned from the economic interests of minorities to the diverse needs of broader social groups. In the process of self-transcendence, these design criticisms expanded the horizons of designers’ work. They facilitated collaborations between design and various industries, including production, consumption, and education, influencing broader socioeconomic and ideological fronts.