Mi Lin
Multifaceted Immersion: Exploring Experiential Pathways to Miao Textile Art
In the contemporary digital era, traditional craftsmanship such as Miao embroidery—an intangible cultural heritage (ICH) from southwestern China—faces both new opportunities and challenges. This heritage, weaving together oral traditions, community practices, and artisanal skills into vibrant cultural expressions, struggles to engage the public effectively. Current exhibitions and cultural experiences often fail to incorporate advanced immersive tools and interdisciplinary academic discourse, potentially jeopardising the rejuvenation of this vibrant culture.
This research aims to address these engagement challenges and embrace digital opportunities through the creation of a strategic curation methodology tailored for immersive artistic experiences that cater to the multifaceted nature of the ICH. This methodology is designed to foster both emotional and cognitive engagement, utilising a practice-based epistemology and developing an ontology and contextualisation framework that includes an evaluation and optimisation system. The goal is to cultivate a profound contemporary appreciation for the Miao embroidery ICH.
The research adopts a transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary approach, synthesising insights from fields encompassing Cultural User Experience (CUX), textile thinking, digital ICH, Digital Arts and Humanities, Human-Computer Interaction for Development (HCI4D), and immersive curation technologies. Methodologically, the research will employ a qualitative framework that includes Autoethnography and Embodiment Theory, engaging in activities such as fieldwork, cultural studies, academic discourse, and studio practices. It will also explore innovative forms of textile making, digital curation, and mixed-reality experiments.
The core contribution of this research lies in developing a digital Miao ICH CUX that enhances engagement with Miao embroidery art experiences. The strategic curation methodology envisioned will not only address contemporary engagement challenges but also facilitate cultural conservation and rejuvenation. Potential indirect outcomes of this research include:
• Enhancing societal awareness of Miao culture, potentially improving the economic conditions of Miao villagers and cultural inheritors.
• Fostering broader conservation efforts and the rejuvenation of diverse cultural heritages.
• Improving the understanding and implementation of engagement strategies within cultural translation and communication across a broader international field of ICHs.•Bridging Western and Eastern studies and practices to facilitate cultural communication and translation, counteracting Orientalism.
• Introducing new perspectives in the arts industry and stimulating the creative economy by blending heritage with digital innovation. This comprehensive approach aims to effectively convey the multifaceted culture of Miao, fostering intellectual and emotional connections among audiences and contributing significantly to the contemporary understanding and preservation of intangible cultural heritages.
Key details
Area of expertise
Supervisors
Gallery
More about Mi
Biography
I am a London-based PhD student at the School of Design, Royal College of Art. Dedicated to pushing the boundaries of textile research through innovation, my cross-disciplinary work focuses on the modern interpretation of textile art and craftsmanship, especially intangible cultural heritages, employing immersive theory and technology.
With an international academic and professional background in Beijing, China, New York, the United States, and London, Great Britain, I hold a Fashion Design bachelor's degree from Tsinghua University, Beijing, receiving both the Excellent Graduation Design and Thesis awards for ranked first place in the Fashion programme. I earned a master’s in Arts and Cultural Management from Pratt Institute, New York, distinguished as "Most Likely to become a Rock Star."
My diverse professional journey spans roles as a fashion designer, researcher and analyst, branding and marketing specialist, art curator, business developer, and entrepreneur in the art, design, and culture industries. I have worked for industry-leading companies and organisations such as Beijing Poly Art Company Limited and Jason Wu LLC. I founded Butterfly Effect, a cross-cultural communication project to popularise textile intangible cultural heritage in New York, and Misha Lin Studio, a designer outdoor sportswear label for skiing enthusiasts.
Degrees
PhD Student in Textile Design Research, Royal College of Art, London, U.K., September 2023 - Present
MPS in Arts and Cultural Management, Pratt Institute, New York, U.S., August 2016 - May 2018, GPA: 3.82/4.0
BA in Fashion Design, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, September 2011 - July 2015, GPA: 3.93/4.0
Experience
Work Experience
Marketing and Business Development Director, UK Tsinghua Association, London, U.K., December 2023 - Present
Founder, Brand Manager & Design Director, Misha Lin Studio, Beijing, China, November 2020 - Present
Intern, Textile Department, Jason Wu LLC., New York, U.S., June 2018 - December 2018
Assistant to the Director of Marketing, Wonderworld Interactive Exhibition, New York, U.S., June 2018 - December 2018
Manager of Design & Operation Assistant, 180 Creative Gallery, New York, U.S., October 2017 - May 2018
Business Development & Project Planning Officer, Beijing Poly Art Contemporary Limited, Beijing, China, November 2019 - November 2020
Project Experience
Organiser & Team Leader, Butterfly Effect, New York, U.S., June 2017 - May 2018
Research Member, The Crop Cycle, New York, U.S., November 2017
Researcher & Designer, Adorkable Tiger, Beijing, China, January 2015 - June 2015
Awards
Most Likely to Become a Rockstar, ACM Program, Pratt Institute, 2018
Adorkable Tiger, The Excellent Graduation Design Award, Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, 2015
The Application of Chinese Folk Tiger Patterns in Fashion Design, The Excellent Graduation Thesis Award, Tsinghua University, 2015
Funding
The Friend of Tsinghua Fashion Scholarship, Tsinghua University, October 2015
The Outstanding Literary and Artistic Scholarship, Tsinghua University, 2011-2012
Exhibitions
Hand in Thought—Unravelling the Intangible《手中思绪——解构无形》), Generative Unravelling《生成解构》Series, Research Biennale 2025, Hangar Space, RCA Battersea, Biennale Exhibition Committee Member, Roundtable: "Articulating Material Engagement" Speaker, Researcher and Artist, 2025
∞: Thousand Threads, Thousand Universes《∞：千针千界》, Generative Unravelling《生成解构》Series, the exhibition Ubiquitous Technology: The Science of Aesthetics, the art salon Symbiosis of Cultural Heritage and Technology, 20 King Street, St. James’s, London, Exhibition Co-curator and Artist, Art Salon Curator and Speaker, 2024
Butterfly Effect, 180 Creative Gallery, New York, Team Leader and Curator, 2018
SOFT BODY, Digital Art Installation, Aranya Gold Coast Community, Qinhuangdao, Beidaihe, Beijing Poly Art Company Limited, Business Development and Project Planning Officer, 2020
15/16 Fashion Show—Tsinghua University Academy of Arts & Design & NABA Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti Milano, the D-PARK No.1 Workshop, 751 Art Zone, Beijing, The Adorkable Tiger, Fashion Designer, 2015
Babylon Fashion Show—Tsinghua University Academy of Arts & Design & NABA Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti Milano, Milan International Fashion Week 2015, Milan, The Adorkable Tiger, Fashion Designer, 2015
The Start of a Long Journey—Outstanding Works by Graduates From Key Art Academies in China, The Adorkable Tiger, Fashion Designer, 2015
Tsinghua University Academy of Arts & Design 2015 Undergraduate Cohort's Second Graduation Exhibition, Tsinghua University Art Museum and Area A Multi-Function Hall, Beijing, The Adorkable Tiger, Fashion Designer, 2015
Publications
Bremner, C. et al. (2024) Whether We Design: A Weather Report. Printed Publication. Available at: https://researchonline.rca.ac.uk/5670/.
Research outputs
Lin, M. (2015). The Application of Chinese Folk Tiger Patterns in Fashion Design. Bachelor's thesis, Tsinghua University.
Lin, M., Wang, Y., Xia, M., Zhao, Z., & Chen, Y. (2018, February 11). Butterfly effect: Introducing Miao traditional textile art in an interactive space. Master's Integrated Capstone Research Project, Arts and Culture Management, Pratt Institute.
Conferences
Mi, L. (2024). Transdisciplinary immersion: Digitising textile intangible cultural heritage. Research presented at the Transcension Workshop: Active Voices – Transdisciplinarity and Participation in Ancient Studies, Berliner Antike-Kolleg (BAK) and the Institute Archäologie und Kulturgeschichte Nordostafrikas (AKNOA), Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.