Yuanning HanDesigner, Researcher
The Unwelt of Cockroaches
Academic Project
Individual Project
2025 SpringThis festival celebrates the existence of cockroaches, held on the first sunny day after World Pest Day—a rebellious response to the narrative that paints pests as threats. Instead, this festival embraces joy by engaging with cockroach life from a cautious distance. Cockroaches existed long before humans—we are the invaders in their world. Why not acknowledge their presence? Humans chase brightness, but cockroaches dwell in darkness. So, this festival honors shadows. In the streets, people wander through shadows cast by everyday object models, “igniting” DIY “shadowworks” to create shadow-born confetti fireworks. Infrastructure is decorated to remind us of cockroach existence. At home, people wear unusual slippers that cast light-spot on the ground instead of shadows—slippers designed to be incapable of killing cockroaches. I materialized the shadow-cancelling slipper as a symbol of the festival, representing the interplay between light and shadow, and the umwelt of humans and cockroaches.
🛋️My Room -> 🪳Cockroach’s Room
🎉Festival Proposal: Let’s Celebrate Shadow
🩴Festival Prop: Shadow Canceling Slippers (Yes! I made one )
Cockroach Tech : Re-appropriaring human-centered technology for cockroaches
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