adora xu. studio©

Edition 1
EOI 2025 ++
  1. Reflection on Theory as Liberatory Practice by bell hooks
  2. Monster U! (group project)
  3. ISW food photography mini lesson
  4. An Unsettled Stomach
  5. Somi （coming）


Edition 2
EOI Blog ++
  1. Why Now? And Why Me?
  2. Design as a Container
  3. Container and Resonance


About —
An interaction designer exploring how design can become a "container" for care. My work uses light, rhythm, and biofeedback to create embodied interactions that help regulate the nervous system and offer daily support for those managing anxiety and stress.
Read more →

4. An Unsettled Stomach


004c



bell hooks wrote in her article, “I came to theory because I was hurting…” When this pain is experienced by new immigrants, it becomes the identity anxiety brought on by cultural displacement. 

This project originated from a very personal observation: As a person living in a completely new cultural environment, this indescribable "discomfort" is not so much a pure physiological feeling. This feeling resonated strongly with Bell Hooks' "Theory as a Liberating Practice". She proposed that theory should be a practice that "names pain" and brings liberation. This has become my core driving force: Can I create a design that doesn't explain the theory but allows people to "practice" it themselves?