The interactive design industry stands at the cusp of a revolutionary transformation – the demand for immersive, multi-sensory experiences is skyrocketing. Designers are rushing to integrate AI-driven interfaces, biometric feedback, and adaptive environments to create a more personalized user experience. Amidst this backdrop of rapid technological evolution, few talents have managed to carve a niche as distinctively as Yuqiao Qin. Seamlessly merging the boundaries of art and technology, Qin has rapidly emerged as a leading figure in the world of interactive design. With a unique flair for harnessing the transformative powers of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), she crafts experiences that not only captivate the senses but also challenge our perceptions of the world around us.
As a multimedia designer, Qin is renowned for leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as VR, XR, and AI to craft transformative interactive experiences and visual narratives. Over the past few years, she has joined forces with globally recognized artists and brands, giving rise to remarkable projects like the Sol LeWitt App, Lauv’s My Blue Thoughts, X Ambassadors Boom, Circulate, and Undercurrent, These projects have been widely acclaimed and secured numerous top industry awards for their innovative and distinctive contributions to the field.
Among these award-winning projects, the X Ambassadors Boom App holds a special place in Qin’s heart, a sentiment echoed by its receipt of the Bronze Award at the 2020 Clio Awards. This innovative project, hailed as the “first music video without video,” marked a significant turning point in the interactive design industry. “This project expanded my perception of accessible design, reframing it not just as an approach to meet specific needs, but as a lens to view the world differently and gain fresh insights and experiences,” Qin reflects. As its lead designer, Qin steered away from the familiar territory of focusing primarily on visual allure. Instead, she crafted an audio-driven immersive narrative that harmoniously integrates a distinct visual language, fashioning a creation meticulously tailored for the visually impaired community.
Qin consistently leverages emerging technologies and evolving design languages in all her works. A prime example is the Sol LeWitt App, a digital gallery for the visionary artist Sol LeWitt – who is regarded as the founder of Conceptual and Minimalist Art from the 1960s. This digital experience, celebrated for its distinctive interactive narratives and visual language, provides a vivid peek into LeWitt’s work, life, and creative process. “To make LeWitt’s intricate works accessible to a broader audience, not just art academics, I deconstructed his artwork and the creative process into storyboards and portrayed them through detailed motion illustrations,” Qin shares. This app has been acknowledged by the Fast Company Innovation by Design Award 2021, inspiring subsequent digital art galleries to adopt a more intimate narrative in portraying the connection between artists and their creations. Qin’s integral contributions to the interactive pattern and visual language of the app have played a monumental role in its acclaim and success.
In addition to pioneering the exploration of new design languages through emerging technologies, Qin is driven by a heartfelt mission to design for a better world, fostering profound social values in her projects. “While design undoubtedly has a potent role in enhancing business revenues, I see it as a powerful language to amplify the emotional connection and empathy in human nature, steering us towards a more harmonious future,” she shares. Among her portfolio, “Lauv My Blue Thoughts”, a project centered on promoting mental health awareness, was crowned with a Silver in the 2020 Clio Awards. As the project’s lead designer, Yuqiao recalls a touching moment from a user, “A young lady shared the relief and fulfillment she experienced being able to express herself through the platform – a moment of joy and validation for me.” Further, Qin’s involvement as the lead designer in the “Circulate” project, a Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards recipient, resonates with her passion for a sustainable future, in which she crafted a gamified approach to bring actions to the future of fashion sustainability. Moreover, her pivotal role in the “Undercurrent” initiative, hailed at the SXSW Innovation Awards, whereYuqiao poured her expertise into the branding and experience design, aiding in elevating public consciousness on climate crises.
Qin currently serves as the Senior Product Designer at Ustwo Studio, a world-leading agency in the gaming and digital product arena. At Ustwo, Qin holds a vision of diving deeper into the realms of emerging technologies including Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI). She is unwavering in her commitment to enriching her designs with innovation and distinctiveness, aspiring to continually elevate user experiences and foster a deeper level of emotional connections. Qin stands on the threshold of a future brimming with opportunities, ready to shape experiences that resonate with authenticity and human touch, one project at a time.
