TaiSen
Taiwanese Street Food
TaiSen, a theoretical Taiwanese street food restaurant, was a semester long project I created at Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University. The goal was to create a brand that was centered around my familial heritage and build the restaurant from the bottom up. This meant not only designing a space that visually resembled my family’s memories and traditions, but also diving into the generations that came before me.
TaiSen, 生台, translates to “born in Taiwan” in Chinese. The first character, 生, is the second character in the Chinese word born, 出生. The second character, 台, is the first character in Taiwan, 台湾.
The name TaiSen was that of my grandmother’s brother. Out of her 9 siblings, he was the only to be born in Taiwan, not China. The name was then passed down to my younger brother in honor of our late great uncle. It was important to me that every aspect of my restaurant be considered and hold meaning.
Family Ties
One of my favorite childhood memories is leaving my aunt’s four-story, back alley appartment in Taiwan with my mom and little brother to get breakfast. We would wander down the back alleys, past the temple, to a little cart that sold Zongzi. A little further down, onto the main street, there was a small breakfast counter that sold Sao Bean, Dan Bing, and Youtiao. We would carry our food back to the house and share it with the rest of my family. My grandmother, Lini, grew up in Taiwan and immigrated to the US when she married my grandfather. My Chinese heritage and Taiwanese culture has been a large part of my life, so I chose a Taiwanese street food restaurant to honor and remember that side of my heritage, staying authentic to my experiences with my family.
Mood board
I began this process with an extensive mood board. It helps me as a designer to narrow down what direction I want to go in by laying out photos that articulate what is in my head.
I began this process with a deep dive into visual research. It all started with a rough written outline of components that I felt were important to building the skeleton of my resturaunt. I then looked through my photos of Taiwan and spent a few days on Pinterest and Behance, paying attention to what specifically I enjoyed in each photo, artwork, or project. My moodboard then became my guide; a point of reference I would revisit when creating each component so the overall design of each aspect always began at the same place. However, I don’t allow my moodboard constrain me artistically. I was constantly adding and adjusting it throughout the project. It was imperative to me that my brand identity stayed authentic to my family rather than something that translated as stereotypically Chinese or Taiwanese.
Logo Imagery
When creating the logo, I began with over 50 thumbnail sketches of marks that related to Taiwan and my family. I put myself back on the streets of Taiwan, visiting the markets with my great Aunt, admiring the artwork outside of my aunts house on Snail Alley, the smells of the food, and the atmosphere of the architecture. I also thought back on my individual family and what imagery relates directly to us. I wanted to steer clear of common marks found in Asian restaurants which led me to my controversial but ultimately loved street rat, or “ratatatat” as he was sometimes called in class.
While I know a rat is a bit of an odd choice considering I am brainding a resturaunt, I found it fitting in more ways than one. Before you say “ew”, let me explain. First and foremost, he is a representation of my younger brother, the namesake of this brand, TaiSen. Taisen was born in 2008, the year of the rat on the Chinese calendar. Rats are also a common street animal in Taiwan (much like in any city) and so he became the perfect mascot for a Taiwanese street food. The “tattoos” on his back also have a twofold meaning. My great uncle was a traditional scroll painter in Taiwan for most of his life, and I wanted to showcase the sentimental connection I had with him and ink paintings by detailing the rats back with brush strokes. Centered on his back is a Japanese cherry blossom, a flower which has always reminded me of my Grandmothers youngest sister. The tatoo’d rat began as a sketch on paper, and then a larger drawing done using Japanese anime brush pens. I scanned him in, gave him colors, and voila!
Type style
Choosing a type style for TaiSen was one of the easier parts of the brand identity. I wanted the style to reflect the organic nature of the illustrations and the logo. I didn’t want a script but I wanted it to look hand done. I ended up using my own handwriting for the main type in the logo. For the subheadings and body typeface used in every other element of the brand I went with Gitan Latin. I enjoyed how the font felt structured, yet mimicked a pen with slight line weight variations. Below are many different typestyle pairings I considered before I landed on the final styles seen in my style tile.
Colors
Another very large decision in my brand identity was color. I struggled with color for a while. I wanted the color scheme to feel oriental while not being red and white or blue and white. This goes back to not wanting a brand that read as stereotypically Chinese. I ended up scrolling through the photos I had from my last visit to Taiwan and was drawn to the greens of the foliage, the reddish browns of the worn-down brick, and the bright blues and teals in the back alley where my aunt lived. With ink drawings and illustrations being key to my brand identity, I thought that incorporating a deep inky blue was only appropriate.
Illustrations
An integral part of my brand identity are the hand drawn illustrations. One of my earliest memories is painting in my great uncle’s studio in Taipei. We sat in the humid heat for hours looking through his drawings. He painted a panda bear with me, taking the time to teach me how to hold the brush and crush the ink. I was young, maybe 8 or 9, but with his help I learned how to imply the body of the bear without drawing every line and use negative space purposefully. It was my first exposure to those artistic concepts and I remember it vividly and fondly. I wanted to honor his craft by inking every part of my brand, from the logo and illustrations to the frames on the menu. Most of the illustrations were done with pen and ink on paper, then scanned into Adobe Illustrator. Others were done with ink brushes on procreate and scanned into AI. This was my favorite part of the process and the part that felt most true to my artistic voice as a designer.
Menu
Every piece of the branding puzzle was informed by its counterparts. Each component was created overlapping the last, and often times I was working on 2 to 3 pieces at a time. This allowed each individual part, such as the menu and interior design of the space, to influence their own design as well as remain consistent with the rest of the brand’s identity. The menu was one of the first things that I honed in on, but it came into existence along side the packaging. I was inspired by the layout of old chinese paper and poster advertisements, yet while creating the packaging I really began to fine tune the illustrations. There was a key set of illustrations that existed from the jump, however some of the illustrations you see in the final product didn’t exist when the menu was born. I wanted the menu to feel full, lively, and hand done while keeping an asymetrical balance. Each element of the menu, save for most of the typography, was hand done with either pen and ink or digitally with a brush. Once the menu felt complete I was able to visualize my brand. For me it felt like the true starting point.
Packaging
As stated before, the packaging and the menu bounced ideas off of one another. They really helped each other take form. I chose to create a series of boba tea cups, a zongzi box, takeout bags, and a container for soups and rice. I wanted the packaging to steer away from traditional Chinese takeout containers and instead focused on what type of packaging would be true to my specific menu. I used my brand patterns and illustrations in various ways, but instead of blocking them out with frames like you see on the menu I let them exist within the space of the packaging.
TaiSen as a Physical Space
I had a specific vision in my head of what I wanted TaiSen to look like if it were truly a real life space. Every time I pictured it I would get these magical loose images that depicted a home-y, some what cluttered and crowed, imperfect resturaunt space. Somewhere that felt lived in and full of old and new traditions. I chose to draw and watercolor the space because it felt like the best way to translate what I could picture. I didn’t think that a mockup or modified stock image would be able to convey what I wanted it to. I began with the interior of the store, looking directly at the counter. I wanted lots of cabinets full of tchotchkes, art and decorations hanigng on the walls, and plants. I knew there had to be a large window, so I painted another view of the interior with tables and a windowsill packed with a collection of sculptures, vases, plants, and heirlooms. Lastly I painted the exterior of the shop- a small hole in the wall restaurant with a blue painted concrete exterior and stained green windows.
Collateral
Collateral was one of the very last aspects of the project that came to fruition. I chose to create objects that I thought I could actually sell in store and would simultaneously be fun to create. I love the look of items that have been wood burned, so giving that quality to my illustrations in the form of wooden coasters was a must. I also wanted to have TaiSen specific chopsticks. One of my favorite things as a kid were chopsticks that had different designs on them- you see hundreds of chopsticks in fun packaging overseas. I also am a firm believer that wooden ones always feel the best in your hand. A place setting with both the chopsticks and coasters seemed only appropriate. To bring in more of my families traditions, I chose to mockup a scroll that my Ju Gong (Great uncle) painted. Selling his art and being able to showcase it within my brand was very important.
Advertising
When researching how restaurants in the 2020’s can best advertise, of course social media was one of the top methods. Therefore, creating a promotional Instragram was only natural. I chose to use photos of Taiwanese food as well as sourcing photos of Taiwanese street vendors and night markets. Most of the food and drinks on my menu are found in the markets and alleyways of Tainan and Taipei. Balanced out with aspects of my branding and heavy illustrations, the Instragram is a perfect representation of what TaiSen’s social media presence would be.
Website
When it came to the website I struggled to come up with an idea. I wanted the online presence of TaiSen to mimic the physical one I was designing, and most website layouts I looked at during my research stage didn’t seem to accomplish what I had in my mind’s eye. I decided that moving away from a traditional website layout and falling deeper into my own designs for this project was the way to go. I ended up mimicking the busy and heavily illustrated style of the menu in my online presence, relying heavily on boarders and frames to break up the sections. I really enjoy how different it is.
Conclusion
The design and branding of TaiSen reflects not only an aesthetic that I am proud of, but also encapsulates much of my family’s history and traditions. Every element, from the nuanced logo to the carefully selected illustrations, carries a story that resonates with the values passed down through generations, as well as the people that have helped define me as a person. Every aspect of this brand, including the smallest of details, were curated with care, creating a space that feels true to my experience with my family - a space filled with love. As I reflect on the headaches and joy this project brought me, I’m reminded that design is not merely about creating visually appealing spaces; it is about crafting an experience that resonates with people. An experience that tells a story. I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to merge my ever-developing skills with my sentimental ties to Taiwan. I feel as though this project was a large stepping stone in the definition of my voice as a designer.
I want to shout a huge thank you to my family for being my source of inspiration and for all of the opportunities they have provided me with. I also would like to extend my gratitude to all those who have supported me, gave advice, or talked with me through design barriers throughout this process. You have helped bring this vision to life.
Credits
Designer: MeiLi Van Hise
Instructor: Katey Stafford, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University.
Stock Photography sourced from Adobe Stock and licencensed from Unsplash
