A brief talk about traditional Chinese cultural elements within modern graphic design

李雅潔

【Abstract】As one of the largest country in the world， China has a long history and profound cultural contents. Four treasures of a study write down the legend of China， typography witnesses the economic development of China， Chinese Kungfu indicates Chinas soaring nation power， Chinese knot represents Chinese peoples good will toward life， and Beijing Opera sings out the special features of this nation. To inherit and carry forward traditional elements of Chinese culture， we combine Chinese elements with modern graphic design to enable individuals to know more about traditional Chinese culture.

【Key words】modern graphic design； Chinese elements； Traditional Chinese culture

More and more foreigners come to China to work or travel since the nation is growing stronger， so the graphic design with traditional Chinese cultural elements can not only improve the communication between Chinese and western culture， but can also expand Chinese cultures global influence. This paper tries to dig in the traditional culture elements， analyze those typical works of modern graphic design， and illustrate the amusing part of those designs with traditional Chinese cultural elements.

1.Traditional Chinese cultural elements

China has a long history and profound culture contents， which are the crystallization of Chinese citizens wisdom and talents. When it comes to traditional Chinese culture， the first thing comes to our minds must be Chinese characters. The character obtains an age-old history and is essential for Chinese culture. From the earliest oracle to the modern character， the evolution of the character reflects the spread and development process of Chinese culture.

Features of a character， such as its stroke， shape， rhythm， and context， coagulate the nations wisdom. Its special beauty of space and unique sense of movement provide modern graphic design with infinite space for innovation and continuous source of inspiration. Typically， Chinese calligraphy， as an example of Chinese characters usages， cannot be replaced by any other designing languages， since it can express writers deeper minds and possesses a unique artistic appeal of this nations characteristics.

Figures of Chinese style is another important part of Chinese elements. People always endow these figures， such as dragon， phoenix， cloud patterns， and Tai Chi， with emotional meanings to fully express their ideas， including blessing， praying or other good means. The Utilization and recomposition of these Chinese styled figures in modern graphic design reflect the powerful energy of traditional Chinese culture and help inheriting and carrying forward the cultural content.

2.The utilization of traditional Chinese cultural elements in modern graphic design

The development of designing technique reflects the transition of human minds. Nowadays， an increasing number of designers choose to get back to the original point and mix up the traditional and the modern elements. As the following examples shows， a successful combination can have astonishing effects on its audiences.

Beijing successfully hosted the 29th Summer Olympic Game in 2008， in which the Chinese elements are everywhere. Firstly， the red impression of the emblem represents Chinese typography. With the first glimpse， there is a running man with open arms on the emblem. However， after been carefully discerned， it is also a Chinese character ‘Jing， which means that the Game is placed in Beijing. Besides， this intelligent character exhibit the beauty of Chinese calligraphy， which is the greatest form of art of lines. The wide usage of lines improves the combination of calligraphy and graphic design. In a word， Chinese elements are perfectly handled in this emblem design. Another critical design is the torch. Its scroll-liked shape represents Chinese papermaking technique， and the propitious cloud figures on the torch mean good luck and peace， which is a perfect match of traditional culture.

Beijing also successfully hosted the World Athletics Championships in 2015， in which the mascot turned to the focus. It is a swallow-shaped kite with elements of Beijing Opera. Firstly， kite has a long history as a traditional entertainment. And the scene of a little kite flying in the sky infers the bright future of China. Lastly， combining the make-up， which is the essential part of Beijing Opera， with the mascot can better exhibit the fascinating charm of traditional Chinese art to audiences.

3.The outlook for the perfect combination

More and more successful Chinese style designs help us realize that the design will become more lively and creative when it is combined with traditional Chinese cultural elements. And the combination can also promote cultural diffusion and encourage more foreigners to learn about Chinese culture. When the traditional figures meet with modern graphic designs， the connotation of Chinese culture is excavated， the colorful national emotions are expressed， and there is a resonance created deep inside individuals heart. It generally grows into an international visual language and enlightens modern graphic design to develop into another level.

References：

[1]Cong Qin，Xu Jindan.A brief talk about traditional Chinese cultural elements within modern graphic design[J].Artistic technology，2013（02）.

[2]Xie Qiang，Cai Huali.The utilization of traditional Chinese cultural elements in modern graphic design[J].Hundreds of Arts，2010（12）.