Design Culture of China - Assignment Example

Design Culture of china Design culture in china: Introduction The past two decades have witnessed a rapid development in the design culture of China.The design industry in the nation has captured global admiration and recognition. The Chinese design has now attracted the attention of the designers and artists all over the world, just as they have found place in the hearts of the customers as well as art loving public in almost all parts of the world. The Shenzhen graphic designs, the fashion and lifestyle in Shanghai, and the architecture and the city in Beijing have become indispensable parts of design exhibitions even in London and New York. The developments in the design culture of the nation have also reflected in its consumer culture too as many people are lured by the prospect of experiencing the grandeur and beauty of Chinese designs. Thus, this paper tries to throw light on the extraordinary moments in Chinese design and the rise of Chinas consumer society. There is truly a sense of design frenzy in China right now. The paper also seeks to explore how the new design explosion has drastically changed the major Chinese cities beyond all recognition in the last two decades. The changes foresee that there will be a time when everyone talks about things being designed in China, not just made in China. The designers included in China Design Now are pioneers for future generations who will bring Chinese design to an international audience. The paper also explores the origin and development of the design culture in the nation and it deals with all the major designers, architects and artists of the era and pinpoints the peculiarities of their designs. Origin and Development of Design Culture in China Tracing back to the origin of designs in China, one understands that the nation has a unique and traditional fashion designing from its early history which was very much in tune with the customs and traditions of the early Chinese people. The nation maintains a long and rich tradition in clothing and fashion designing. The ancient Chinese clothing demonstrated both refinement and sophistication even during the Shang Dynasty from 16th to 11th B.C. Pien-fu, the chang-pao, and the shen-I are the thre dominant traditional Chinese clothing and each of them has strong roots in the tradition and customs that prevailed in the early Chinese civilization. The pien-fu is a “two-piece ceremonial costume of a tunic-like top extending to the knees and a skirt or trousers extending to the ankles” whereas the chang-pao is “a one-piece garment extending from the shoulders all the way to the heels” (The Culture of China: Living and Values, 1998). The shen-I, on the other hand is a mixture of both-a tunic and skirt woven together as a single piece and is most commonly used. The modern fashion in Chineese dressing is a combination of these styles with modern decorative designs such as ‘dragons, phoenixes, clouds, and lightning’ and unique “macramé are used to decorate shoulders, bodices, pockets, seams, and openings of clothing, as well as belts, hair ornaments, and necklaces” (The Culture of China: Living and Values, 1998). However, one can find influences of these ancient clothing designs even in modern Chinese designs too. Chinese designers have become a powerful international influence in graphic design and the latter part of the 20th century witnessed great developments in Chinese graphic design industry that gained both international recognition and international acclaim. In the early 19the century Chinese designs were limited to thematic poster designs as there were little opportunities for the Chinese designers to establish themselves; however, in the 1970s design industry began to flourish in Hong Kong mainly because of the influence of the graphic design works of Kan Tai-Keung, Alan Chan, and Henry Steiner, an American who moved to Hong Kong in 1961. One can clearly observe an East/ West aesthetic sense in their designs and this ‘cross cultural creative pattern’ was persistent in the future Chinese designs too (WONG p. 1). However, current trends in Chinese designs display both originality and detachment from the Western traditions as one can find many modern Chinese designers “using international style to help them establish reputations, both locally and internationally, while striving to avoid clichés and stereotypical images imposed by the Western world” (WONG p. 1). The period after the 1990s can be seen as the golden era of Chinese designs as the period saw “rapid establishment of graphic design associations, expanding activities with many events centering on poster design and graphic design publications within Greater China, and the active participation of Chinese designers in major international poster design competitions” (Wong). Explosion of design in china The development of the various designs in China was not limited to the metropolitan or major cities alone. The explosion of design had far reaching effects on all parts of the nation. Thus, it is not easy to generalize the level or nature of the development of the design culture in the nation. There are distinct regional variations and preferences for not just each province in China but even each city. Depending on where in China a city is located, one can see influences of Russian, Korean, Mongolian, Tibetan, Burmese and Muslim cultures in the art, architecture and music of the city. Shenzhen (where Chinas contemporary graphic design movement started), fashion and lifestyle in Shanghai, and architecture and the city in Beijing. 1. Shenzhen: resent development in graphic design The recent developments in graphic design in Shenzhen can be traced back to the popularity and wide level of international attention that the city received with its formation of the first professional design association, the Shenzhen Graphic Design Association in 1996, and the first Graphic Design in China ’96. The thematic poster exhibition, held in 1997, with the theme ‘communication’ depicted the works by Wang Xu and Chen Shaohua where the artists “interpreted communication between the Western world and Chinese culture” (WONG, p. 5). This exhibition provided new dimension to the growth of the design industry in the nation as people from all over the world started viewing Chinese designs with admiration and curiosity. Shenzhen is rightly named as the ‘cradle of modern graphic design in China’ and the statistics show that at present the city has “about 20,000 to 30,000 graphic designers, with the number ranking among the largest of Chinese cities. There are also nearly 1,000 graphic design companies or institutes, with a total production value of 600 million yuan (US$83.86 million)” (Communication Design in Shenzhen, 2008) . The development of the printing industry in the 1980s has triggered this increase in the number of the graphic designers. Shenzhen designers have displayed enormous skill and innovation in their packaging designs and it is no wonder that “Shenzhen designers have won "Star of the World" by World Packaging Organization more than 30 times, the worlds top award for the trade, 56 international awards and 500 provincial awards” (Communication Design in Shenzhen, 2008) Chinese and international designers: Display the work, focusing on architecture, fashion, and graphics in three major cities that are as starting point for exploring different designed fields: “Shenzhen is home to more than 10 creative design bases, with a large number of professional designers and design enterprises. Ten world-famous designers have been stationed in the Tianmian Creative Industrial Estate, including Philip Stark, one of the worlds top designers; Luigi Colani, famous German industrial designer; and Hiroaki Tanaka, famous Japanese industrial designer. John Hawkins, "British father of the creative industry," has also signed a deal to set up his studio in the Tianmian Creative Industrial Estate” (The design industry in Shenzhen, 2008) The Shanghai style of the 1930s marks the beginning of Chinese modern design. The design works produced during this period reflected foreign influences as the metropolitan city had “numerous foreign concession zones, through which the customs and products of other countries entered local life”, and many of the Shanghai artists of the period were pursued “the worldwide art and design trends, particular Art Deco and Cubism, integrating and experimenting with geometric patterns, ornamentation, bold colours and strong patterns” (WONG, p. 2). The names of Wong and Chen are two prominent and influential names when one deals with the modern Shanghai design culture. While Wong gained international reputation for his “projects that have tested the boundaries of conceptualism and design, exploring the relationship between aesthetics and function”, Chen specialized in design, architecture and art. Bamboo scaffolding has been one of the prominent features of the Design Shanghai by both the artists. (100% Design Shanghai And International Home D¨¦cor & Design Gaining Momentum In Run Up To June Exhibitions, 2008) . As Ron Gluckman, an American reporter who roamed about in Beijing and Hong Kong, wonders at the architecture expressions in the city and exclaims, “The worlds most renowned architects are flocking to Shanghai, where they are building the worlds biggest skyscrapers and hotels, futuristic model towns, theme cities and numerous other never-seen-before projects. All the innovative puts this Chinese city in the vanguard for style, ambition and experimentation” (Ron) Second World War- However, the Shanghai spirit of commercial graphic design continued under the capitalist economic system and British colonial rule in Hong Kong after the war. Chen Yifei is acclaimed as the most commercially successful painter and visual artist of the time. One could find ‘a blend of realism and romanticism’ in his oil paintings and his contribution to the design culture of China lies in his genuine effort “to bridge the gap between the art of the Cultural Revolution and Western contemporary art” in his paintings (David, 2005). He proved himself to be a true representative of the Cultural Revolution in his famous Mao portraits and depiction of heroic events of the modern Chinese nation. His paintings included portraits of Chinese women in traditional dresses, the colorful landscapes of China and the depiction of Tibetan villagers in their traditional attires. “Chen Yifei painted oil paintings of realistic portraits and impressionistic scenery. China Chen Yifei’s portrait oil paintings on oilpainting factory.com included Western musicians, Chinese musicians playing traditional instruments such as the pipa, minstrels in medieval garb, Tibetan villagers and ballet dancers. His landscape oil painting extend from Venice to the Chinese canals of his native Zhejiang province. The critics said whatever then theme and style, the common aesthetic link behind all of Chen Yifei’s oil painting Chinese work is a commitment to beauty. The most fascinating part of his career has been his attempt to combine elements from his native country with the Western traditions of both realism and impressionism. Chen Yifei’s painting Chinese work does not fit easily into a “Chimese” or “Western” mold. Perhaps his art can be described as “multi-cultural”-not in the current sense of locking up a person in whatever ethnic group he was born into, but in the sense of combining the best of several cultures” (China Chen Yifei Oil Painting). Han Feng is the next leading fashion and life style designer who displays her own unique stamp on everything that she designs. Feng’s fashion designs are marked by their ‘unexpected patterns’, ‘astonishing mix of fine detailing, and “by their materials: beautifully colored silks, fine wools, and diaphanous fabrics that are minimally styled, much like her furniture” (Feng Han). Her designs are innovative even when they contain both Western and Eastern elements in them: “Structurally, simplicity and innovation are the touchstones of all her design work - reflecting Western functionality and Eastern spirituality, a warm and subtle play between the traditional and the contemporary” (Feng Han). Her unique designs, fresh outlooks, and innovative strategies have enabled her to appear regularly in many prestigious fashion and life style magazines and has made her name a synonym for modern fashion and life style all over the world. Lu Kun is yet another promising and influential designer who has taken the design culture of China to the international world’s recognition and appraisal. He was selected as the best young designer by the Shanghai Fashion Federation and is rightly nicknamed as “"Chinas own Galliano." According to him, “the Western perception of Chinese fashion is often unduly narrow” and he is “on a mission to correct this vision and present a modern and fresh Chinese style that is designed for todays trend conscious people. Still, traditional Chinese elements are not lacking in his designs which use a rich color palette of warm red hues, which are considered colors of luck and happiness, and a touch of the traditional, but very luxurious gold” (Lu Kun- Designer for the Divas, 2008). His clothing design is sexy and feminine and it is a honor to his talent that celebrities like Paris Hilton wears his brand. The most noteable aspect of his designs is that they try to propagate the rich Chinese culture to the international community. The names of Ma Ke, Wang Yiyang and Zhang Da come to one’s mind while dealing with the design culture and recent developments in Chinese designs today. Ma Ke is nominated for Brit Insurance Designs of the Year award in London for her “Wu Yong”; it has been remarked that the “voluminous, sculptural garments that make up "Wu Yong" celebrate form over function and beauty before practicality” and that her designs are “more esoteric and conceptual than wearable” (Oppenheim Leonora). Wang Yiyang is known for his reputed brand ZUGZUG, which was named as the most promising designer brand in 2004. The ZUGZUG brand is not only popular among the customers in the major Chinese cities like Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuhan, and Hong Kong but also it is also of high demand in Japan, Singapore, France, Belgium, and other countries. Zhang Da is another influential minimalist designer who draws his inspiration from Chinese calligraphy. Thus, it can be concluded that all the above mentioned artists and designers have played pivotal roles in the making and development of the design culture in China and their works and paintings have succeeded in attracting customers and design loving people from all over the world to the nation. Beijing: Beijing has established itself as a monumental new architecture that is transforming the city and beyond. The city is abundant with its novel architectural designs and structures. One comes across a large number beautiful and well-designed architectural projects in the capital city which include the National Grand Theatre in Beijing, Hong Luo Clubhouse, CCTV Headquarters and TVCC Cultural Center, Digital Beijing, National Centre for the Performing Arts, Beitucheng Station in Beijing, Donchanq’an Jie Shopping Centre and the National Stadium in Beijing. The National Stadium in Beijing has received the appreciation of the whole world and nations all over the world have come to experience the rich architectural design of China through the bird’s nest during the Olympic Games. Designed by the Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, the National Stadium in Beijing, incorporates elements of Chinese art and culture. Both the architects wanted to make the stadium the most eco-friendly and for this purpose the stadium is so carefully designed using complex mesh of steel bands. For this the architects constructed each discreet space independently within the outer layer to enable free air passage. The stadium is so well designed to resemble a bird’s nest that is made of branches and twigs (See the image below :) Another monumental architectural design that needs special attention is the China Central Television (CCTV) headquarters designed by by Rem Koolhaas and Ole. The new headquarters for CCTV, Chinas state television network, resembles ‘a cartoon version of the letter "Z"’ and at “ 230 meters high, the brightly colored, continuous loop with no right angles” is so designed to “tower over every other building in the city” (Gluckman Ron). See the image below Conclusion The culture of a country and its design approach are inseparably interrelated. Among the design architects the world over, china’s architects have a place of prominence because of their unique and appealing approach. China’s mastery over designing and architecture has attracted the attention of many and international exhibitions in many countries are incomplete without china’s designs and styles. Over the years China has developed a design culture that is in consistent with the language, life style and political scenario in the country. The driving forces of China’s culture include operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Building successful relationship and trust is the slogan of success in the design market of China. The country is looking forward enthusiastically to retain its popularity in design and to sustain in the competitive market. Works Cited The Culture of China: Living and Values. (1998). Think quest Team 20443. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://library.thinkquest.org/20443/g_clothing.html Wong, Wendy Siuyi. Detachment and Unification: Chinese Graphic Design. Hong Kong Baptist University. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.rthk.org.hk/mediadigest/md0601/05.html WONG, Wendy Siuyi. In Search of a New Graphic Design Frontier in China: Establishing the “Chinese-ness” of International Style. York University, Department of Design. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.idemployee.id.tue.nl/g.w.m.rauterberg/conferences/cd_donotopen/adc/final_paper/081.pdf The design industry in Shenzhen. June 18, 2008. www.sznews.com. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.sznews.com/zhuanti/content/2008-06/18/content_3050135.htm Communication Design in Shenzhen. June 18, 2008. www.sznews.com. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.sznews.com/zhuanti/content/2008-06/18/content_3050132.htm 100% Design Shanghai And International Home D¨¦cor & Design Gaining Momentum In Run Up To June Exhibitions. (2008). Reed Exhibitions. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.100percentdesign.com.cn/2008/ENG/news.85920a8cba6c61bc.htm Gluckman, Ron. Flash City. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.gluckman.com/ShanghaiArchGeo.html Barboza, David. April 4, 2005. Chen Yifei, 59, Painter and Entrepreneur, Dies. The New York Times Company. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/14/arts/design/14chen.html?_r=2 China Chen Oil Yifei Painting, Toperfect, the terminal to your hard journey of searching for arts suppliers, oilpaintingfactory.com. Retrieved, January, from http://www.oilpaintingfactory.com/China-chen-yifei-painting,html Feng Han, Designers, Design Life Now: National Design Triennial 2006. Retrieved, January 20, 2009, from http://triennial.cooperhewitt.org/index.php?id=37 Feng Han, Asha: Inspirational Women, ashfoundation.org. Retrieved, January 20, 2009, from http://www.asha-foundation.org/women/women/han_feng.php Lu Kun- Designer for the Divas, 2008. Life Style in China, All about China-radio86. Retrieved, January 20, 2009, from http://www.radio86.co.uk/explore-learn/lifestyle-in-china/5750/lu-kun-designer-for-the-divas Oppenheim Leonora, Ma Ke: Wu Yong collection, coolhunting.com. Retrieved, January 20, 2009, from http://www.coolhunting.com/archives/2008/02/ma_ke_wu_yong_u.php Gluckman Ron, Beijing: Bold? Brazen? Gluckman.com. Retrieved, January 20, 2009, fromhttp://www.gluckman.com/BeijingArchitecture.html Read More