From ornaments as small as a brooch to landmark architecture, from a poster to celebrate Chinese New Year, to a logo for national events, design has been even more integrated into the economic and social lives of the Chinese people, reflecting the advancement throughout decades.

People have become more aware of the importance of design, not only because it caters to their basic needs on a daily basis — how to eat, what to wear, where to live and the ways of transportation — but also, they have found the greater role of design in forecasting a trend.

This motivated the launch of the China Design Exhibition and Public Art Thematic Exhibition in 2012, aiming to investigate the scope and depth of how design changes the country. The event has been held in Guangdong province, one of the most developed regions in China. Its fourth edition is now being held in Shenzhen of Guangdong, long seen as the "forefront of reform and opening-up" and in recent years, viewed as "a city of design".

On show are more than 1,300 works that examine new trends in design and public art, especially in serving national strategies and addressing social concerns, over the recent four years — the third edition of the event was held in 2019.

The current one, closing on Thursday, is being held at Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning and the Guan Shanyue Museum, themselves two landmark buildings embodying the creative spirit of design in the metropolis.

And, for the first time, the event has provided an online tour.