Design as Lifestyle: How Has Chinese Design Development Affected Chinese Lifestyle - Coursework Example

DESIGN AS LIFESTYLE: HOW HAS CHINESE DESIGN DEVELOPMENT AFFECTED CHINESE LIFESTYLE? INTRODUCTION: Traditionally, arts and crafts were at the core of Chinese cultural heritage, and many of the influences that shaped modern design had their origins in centuries old artistic traditions. Chinese modernism came to include a blend of traditional fine and folk arts from its own culture, along with graphics and art styles from Japan and Europe (Wong, 2001: 52). With the political developments of Hong Kong and Macau returning to Chinese sovereignty in July 1997 and December 1999, respectively, it is now possible and even preferable to consider a unified history of Greater China. In this paper, is presented a research study on the development of graphic design in Shanghai before 1979, design in Hong Kong after 1979 and during 1997, the influence of western concepts and style, and their effect on Chinese design and lifestyle. DISCUSSION: Graphic designers combine visual signs, symbols and images into a visual-verbal presentation that the audience can understand. The graphic designer is both message maker and form builder, and introduces order and clarity from the relationships between the elements (Meggs, 1992:1-3). Another aspect of the designer’s task is to infuse the content with resonance through the use of scale and contrast, cropping of images and the choice of typefaces and colours. Graphic forms have a dual role: as visual design and as graphic communication. The Development of Modern Chinese Graphic Design Style: The most well-known existing example of Chinese modern design is found in the Shanghai style of the 1930’s. At that time, Shanghai was China’s most metropolitan city, and design works produced there during this period reflect foreign influences originating from the city’s numerous foreign concession zones, through which the customs and products of other countries entered local life (Wong: 2). Shanghai artists who trained in Japan or Europe were inspired by Western design. They adapted in their work: worldwide art and design trends, particular Art Deco and Cubism, experimenting with geometric patterns, ornamentation, bold colours and strong patterns. Western art styles enriched the expressive range of composition and form in China’s emerging modern design, and the new resources were artfully combined with elements from the region’s own artistic concepts (Wong: 2). Thus, the output of Chinese modern design was quite distinctive, moving beyond what had been simply imported from the West. Fig.1 illustrates two examples: for the mix of East with West. (Wong: 2) Fig. 1 (a) is the cover of Shanghai Sketch, issue # 76, Comics Magazine, first published in 1928, Shanghai. Fig. 1 (b) is a newspaper advertisement for Pepsodent Toothpaste, March 1949, Hong Kong. Newspaper advertising from the period after the Second World War, through the 1960s illustrated the Hong Kong hybrid of elements from the Shanghai period. Figure 1(b). The Shanghai period represented both the beginning of a hybridized Chinese modern design and the best of this emerging form before the Second World War. Achievements in Shanghai were influential throughout the country and in subsequent periods of development after the war. However, after the Shanghai achievements of the 1930’s, Chinese modern design did not progress continuously. Creative design work of the quality produced in Shanghai could not be sustained during the war, and after the Communists gained power in 1949, commercial graphic design was seen as a symbol of Western life and as unnecessary consumerism. However, the Shanghai spirit of commercial graphic design was able to continue under the capitalist economic system and British colonial rule in Hong Kong after the war (Wong, 2001: 52). The art and culture sectors in Hong Kong benefited from the influx of talent from the People’s Republic of China. From the period after the war through the 1960’s, commercial graphic design developed at a steady pace, states Wong (p.3). Hong Kong was able to maintain its modern Chinese design style until at least the 1960’s. Chinese designers previously trained in Shanghai and Guangzhou had to gradually alter their style to fit into the new commercial environment brought about by American design specialists from overseas, not local designers. According to Turner (1989: 79), a history of design of the earlier ‘third world nations’ was not taken into consideration till the present time, only that of the modern, industrialized capitalist nations used to be studied. Now China has become a force to be taken into account. Cross-Cultural Design: The American designer, Henry Steiner, along with other foreign designers, incorporated elements of the unique cultural environment of Hong Kong into his design. He successfully established the principle of cross-cultural design, adapting the generally understood concepts of Western design into the Hong Kong and Chinese cultural imagery, with its unique written characters and cultural symbols. This also opened up a new dimension of combined style, which had never been achieved in the Shanghai period. In doing this, Steiner frequently made use of Chinese cultural imagery to create a distinctive Chinese hybrid that inspired later Hong Kong designers. Fig 3.a and 3.b illustrate cross-cultural design: Fig 3a Hong Kong International Music Festival, Poster by Henry Steiner, 1969 (Wong:3) Fig. 3b Poster by Yu Bingnan1 fig. 3a. fig. 3b. Minick and Ping (1990), highlight the role of Lu Xun as a leading art and design reformer in the early twentieth century. The authors affirm the close relation in changing forms and styles of graphic design in China and the cultural and political forces which with the designers have had to contend (Margolin, 1992: 82). The struggle between the emerging hybridized Chinese graphic design style and Western style. The 1970’s saw the initial development of local Hong Kong design education which was government funded and characterized by attempts to copy and imitate Western design. the mid-1970’s, some local designers saw the weakness of the Westerndominated understanding of design in Hong Kong (Wong: 4). They began to perceive a lack of individuality in their works as well as a failure to link the design principles they had learned with their daily life and challenges in the Hong Kong context. The late 1970s marked the beginning of exchange activities between Hong Kong designers and institutions outside the territory, including those from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Japan. Since China had been cut off from the outside world for almost three decades, the visits of Hong Kong and overseas designers and organizations introduced a new perspective in design and updated mainland practitioners on the latest developments from around the world (Wong: 4). Art and design educators and students, such as Wang Xu and Wang Yuefei, who later become graphic design pioneers in PRC, were greatly inspired. In the mid-1980’s, Hong Kong designers and their works began to receive exposure in China and Taiwan on a regular basis. Due to the emergence of a more relaxed political climate and because Hong Kong had fewer trading restrictions graphic designers from Hong Kong enjoyed greater job opportunities and a leading position throughout the Greater China region during the 1980’s. Thematic Poster Design Trend: By the late 1980’s, the political situation in Taiwan had become more liberal. Designers and design organizations started to initiate thematic poster design exhibitions locally, and marketed the events as cultural activities. Such non-commercial events provided designers in Taiwan an opportunity to create works free from commercial restrictions governed by clients’ preferences. When the thematic poster design trend spread to PRC, designers who had previously faced a lack of creative outlets were eager to demonstrate their graphic design ability. Within a short time after the mid-1990s, the thematic poster trend was in full swing within the region. At the same time, designers from PRC also increased their exposure in international design circles dramatically, due to the inspiration of intra-regional poster shows and with the help of international poster exhibition information available on the Worldwide Web (Wong: 4). Along with increasing contact with the outside world, the overall graphic design standard in PRC was improving steadily. Visual expressions and styles within Chinese graphic design were diversified in the search for a new stylistic identity. Diversification of Chinese graphic design style: The graphic design industry started to take off in the mid-1990’s. With the establishment of Shenzhen Graphic Designe Association in 1996, the first professional graphic design association in China. Two significant intra-regional events were organized by the Association. The Works by Wang Xu and Chen Shaohua interpreted communication between the Western world and Chinese culture. Younger designers like Jiang Hua and Pan Qing from Ningbo have been inspired by Wang Xu. Jiang’s early national award-winning work with the theme of reunification of Hong Kong including Shen Hoapeng attempted to expand the visual styles of Chinese graphic design (figure 3), (Wong: 5-6). Interaction, thematic poster, by Shen Hoapeng, 1999, (Wong: 6). Western Interest in Chinese Art: One factor that has encouraged the growth of Western interest in recent Chinese art has been the emergence of China as a player in the global political field. With the increasing cultural openness that followed the end of the Cultural Revolution, and the economic growth that stemmed from market reforms, China now seems to be less alien and more of a force to be reckoned with. Especially, the focus of Western attention has been on the art of this post-Cultural Revolution period (Clarke, 2000). The international art audience has been able to obtain a quite detailed picture of developments in Chinese art since the mid-1980s due to the exhibitions being held. Thematic poster design has provided opportunities for designers from PRC to demonstrate their creativity and potential to the world. Because of this trend, design students and young designers in China understand more about graphic design through the medium of posters. Because of China’s previous isolation from the rest of the world, a large number of design education programs in Chinese universities are still built around a skillbased model, states Wong (p.7). Poster design exhibitions introduce the importance of creative concept in design to young designers and students in China. This new way of thinking will definitely accelerate the overall development and standard of graphic design in China in the long term. CONCLUSION: This paper has highlighted China’s development in the field of graphic design. Improving Lifestyle and Economic Changes: The latter half of the 20th century was a period of economic development for East Asia, especially in China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. The most direct and significant result of China’s economic growth is the amazing improvement in quality of life for Chinese people. According to Clarke (2001: 17), both western modernist and Chinese traditionalist concepts have been integrated in Hong Kong cultural space. Hybrid art has been the consequence of the dilemma of choosing one form completely over the other. The artists had to ensure that the incompatibility of the two forms should not become apparent, in order to achieve the task of creating modern as well as Chinese design at the same time. The future appears to be promising for further design development in China, which directly plays a part in impacting economic prosperity and growth in the nation. REFERENCES Clarke, David. (2001). Hong Kong Art: Culture and Decolonization. London, U.K.: Reaktion Books Ltd. Clarke, David. (2000). “The Culture of a Border Within: Hong Kong Art and China”. Art Journal, Summer 2000. Web site: http://www.collegeart.org/artjournal/ (Retrieved on 15th May, 2007). Margolin, Victor. Book Review, (1992). Minick, S., Jiao P, 1990, Chinese Graphic Design in the Twentieth Century. London, Thames and Hudson. Design Issues, Vol.8, No.2, (Spring, 1992): pp.82-84. Meggs, Philip B. (1992). Type and Image: The Language of Graphic Design. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. Publishers. Turner, Matthew (1989). “Early Modern Design in Hong Kong”. Design Issues, Vol.6, No.1: pp.79-91. Wong, Wendy Siuyi, (York University, Department of Design, Toronto, Canada). A paper presented on “In Search of a New Graphic Design Frontier in China: Establishing the “Chinese-ness” of International Style”. Wong, Wendy Siuyi (2001). “Detachment and Unification: A Chinese Graphic Design History in Greater China Since 1979”. Design Issues, Vol.17, No.4: pp.51-73. Read More