A Study on Pathways for Cultivating Aesthetic Expression Skills in the Course “Rendering Techniques for Product Design” in the Context of Digital and Intelligent Transformation

Abstract

The transition to digital and intelligent technologies is transforming the knowledge structure, teaching methods, and competency development goals of product design education. As a foundational course in product design, “Product Design Rendering Techniques” not only provides training in rendering techniques such as line work, perspective, color, materials, and lighting but also plays a crucial role in cultivating students’ abilities in aesthetic judgment, form expression, the translation of design logic, and comprehensive visual expression.From the perspective of cultivating aesthetic expression abilities, this paper identifies the main issues in traditional course design, analyzes the shift in teaching approaches within the context of digital and intelligent transformation, defines the components of aesthetic expression abilities, and proposes a path for curriculum reform covering course resource development, AI-assisted analysis, the integration of hand-drawn and digital illustration, project-based task organization, training in integrated text-and-image expression, and formative assessment mechanisms.The study argues that curriculum reform should not replace hand-drawing training with digital tools. Instead, it should leverage technological assistance, case studies, project-based practice, and process-oriented feedback to shift the curriculum from a focus on technical skills training to the cultivation of aesthetic expression capabilities, thereby enhancing students’ ability to comprehensively express product form, color, materials, function, and context