Shaohua Chen: Designing a Country Needs a "Large Design" Concept

Chen Shaohua is undoubtedly the leading figure in domestic graphic designers. He will have a big outbreak and debut in a few years. He belongs to the type of sustainable development.

Turning on China’s brief history of graphic design, Chen Shaohua is an indispensable figure. Looking back at the history of China over the past decade, Chen Shaohua once again linked his name with the big events in China.

In 1984, Chen Shaohua won a poster gold medal at the 6th National Art Exhibition with a piece of "Green, From Your Hand." Chen Shaohua emerged from this point.

In 1986, a person who had never been involved in a movie was invited by Chen Kaige to join the main creative team of the movie “King of Children” and won the Best Golden Rooster Award in the 8th Film Festival.

In 1995, the Fourth World Women’s Congress was held in China. This is the first time that China has hosted a world-wide conference. Chen Shaohua, who is in Shenzhen, has been recommended to design a set of four-letter stamps. , passed in a good applause.

In the 200 years, the national bid for the Olympic logo was collected. Chen Shaohua once again shot up and designed the Tai Chi figure and the Chinese Olympics logo. So far, this work of such concern has hardly been criticized. It is rare at home and abroad.

On December 1, 2003, the country’s first stamp to prevent AIDS was issued. The designer was Chen Shaohua.

The successful design of the monkey ticket this year not only made Chen Shaohua a news person sought after by the media from the central government to the local government, but also made him a well-known designer. The colorful and smiling laughing monkey not only won the love of the people, but also was highly sought after by the fans. It has injected a cardinal agent into the postal market that has been low. After the new monkeys were booked on the market, the fares went all the way. Turning a few heads back, the third generation of Monkey King was favored, and Chen Shaohua was once again known as China. --Inscription

Imitation of others is the designer's greatest taboo

When the reporter called for an interview, Chen Shaohua had just returned to Shenzhen from Beijing. This time he participated in the annual conference organized by AGI, the world's leading designer group, in Beijing in September this year. This is a major event for the Chinese design community. . Founded 54 years ago, AGI is the International Association of Personal Designers. It is considered by the global graphic designers as the shrine and attracts the world's top designers. Due to the strict rules, so far there are only 300 members in the world. China currently has only Five members including Chen Shaohua. Speaking of the theme of this year's AGI conference, Chen Shaohua said that the organizer of Tsinghua University originally proposed "visual harmony", but he did not think that there was nothing new. South Korea used a similar theme in a design conference three years ago. It was recommended by Chen Shaohua. The theme has been changed to: "Chinese style." At that time, design masters from all over the world will perform tricks on Chinese paper fans. Chen Shaohua said: "Chinese style" is a theme that is neither haughty nor humble. Chinese people have confidence and courage. Contains Chinese traditional philosophical ideas, there is an invisible bearing of the elephant. It also meets the influence of China today on the international stage.

"Imitating others is the greatest taboo for designers." Chen Shaohua made a summary with this sentence.

In the face of reporters, he did not want to talk about his past achievements, and he was more willing to talk about the value and significance of design for the society and the essence of Shenzhen's establishment of a “design capital”.

Design is something for all people

Reporter: (hereinafter abbreviated) Shenzhen proposed the urban positioning of “Two Cities and One Capital” this year and proposed to build Shenzhen into a “city of libraries”, a “city of pianos” and a “city of design” and regard design as Shenzhen. A "business card" to build Shenzhen into a modern design capital. This news should be a good thing for your designers.

Chen Shaohua: (hereinafter referred to as Chen) Shenzhen proposes to establish a design capital that we can say that our reform in the past 20 years has finally touched on one of the most essential issues, namely the modernization of aesthetic taste. At the same time, Shenzhen has created an opportunity for future economic growth. City leaders and propaganda departments are concerned about the value of designing this field. This is an amazing progress. For designers, it is even more encouraging. What I pay more attention to is that from leadership to every citizen really understand the meaning and value behind the design, and the importance of design to the development of a city and even the country. Design is not just about graphic design. Graphic design is just one of them. I want to emphasize a "big design" concept. Social and economic development to a certain level, it will put forward requirements to improve the overall quality, but the quality is not only cultural quality, not to say that a city has a lot of college students or graduate students, not just rely on academic credentials.

Reporter: What do you mean by the concept of "big design"?

Chen: There is also a broad and narrow sense here. Broadly speaking, it is actually a question of “human modernization”. The elements of “human modernization” include two important contents: aesthetic literacy and creative ability, or the innovative spirit and creation under the control of aesthetic cultivation. ability. Recently, a Japanese designer asked me if you God sent five astronauts to heaven. Such a big success, why not design a visual system. As a Chinese designer, I really have no sense of self-conceit. Also, we have high-tech products invented by many top-ranking scientists in the country. From the appearance to the branding of the publicity products, we can't stand it. There are even more ridiculous is that many famous painters do not know how to dress and wear a picture book. The typeface on the cover is actually the "artificial body" that lacks the aesthetic sense of Chinese characters. People who engage in fine art do not understand the United States and are very common in China. However, we are blind to it. Because of the lack of modern design aesthetics and tastes, the so-called high-educated “bamboo dumplings” abound. In 2001, I saw a newspaper with a small block of tofu, which may not be noticed by many people. Or I would not think about it if I read it. The content is what Charles sent Prince William to school. What did he learn? Aesthetic history! What are the elements that can be seen as European nobles? it goes without saying.

Reporter: We have seen the education of fine arts and music as an affiliated course since childhood. We have not laid a good foundation.

Chen: Yes! In our education, we only regard aesthetics as a dispensable affiliate course. This is a big misunderstanding. In the final analysis, advocating design is not a matter of culture and art. It is a matter of national quality. It is also a fundamental issue that the government must pay attention to. If you want Shenzhen to have a stamina for development in the next 30 to 50 years, you should start with the dolls. This is the most fundamental way to establish a "design capital."

Reporter: So what do you mean in the narrow sense?

Chen: In the narrow sense, designing this concept is a cross-industry, cross-sectoral, comprehensive, and special industry. If society and business are likened to hardware, then design is one of the most important software that covers almost all industries. It is even more indispensable in today's economic society. It is an important cause for the promotion of a country, a city, a company, a brand, and a product quality, especially brands and products. It can be endowed with immeasurable huge added value. Why does the same product have a street vendor? In a luxury store, prices are ten or even dozens of times higher than in a glass case. What I want to say is that design is a huge industry that we need to develop. Our economic development can not only focus on the fashionable high-tech field. In fact, the greater economic potential lies in those many unconventional traditional manufacturing industries to enhance their brand value through excellent design and creation. Otherwise, we will always be a big country with cheap labor. Our products will never be able to take place in foreign countries.

Designed nation

Reporter: What specific advice do you have for designing the market?

Chen: Three years ago I wrote an essay titled "Designing a State," which listed some examples of our neighboring countries and regions. For example, Japan used design as one of its national policies after the war, from politics, economy, culture, The state has introduced the concept of design leader on a series of major issues, intensified design education and advocated creative science. In the process of implementation, a strong specialized expert system was first established, and the design was completed by this expert system rather than the national management department. Surprisingly, the development speed of the entire nation and nation after the war in Japan has grown by leaps and bounds. The national policy of its design and leadership has radiated its product image, municipal image, urban construction image, humanistic image, and community image, making this nation in twenty or thirty. Rapidly re-emerged within the year, and even surpassed Europe and the United States in certain aspects. South Korea used the 1988 Olympic Games to propose a slogan to establish the country. After more than two decades of development, it is currently pressing Japan in many areas. In 1999, Taiwan proposed a strong design country and held the first design expo.

Reporter: What kind of atmosphere should Shenzhen have in establishing a “design capital”?

Chen: Design and creation are inseparable from each other. The greatest value of human beings is creativity. The real significance of designing and creating markets is to encourage and confirm people's individuality and creativity, and put the greatest value of people in the most important position.

Looking at the history of human development, you will find that all ethnic groups, nations, or dynasties that respect personality, freedom, and encouragement must be prosperous and prosperous; on the contrary, they must be backward and decline. The civilization history of the Chinese nation for 5,000 years has been brilliant, but the decline of nearly three hundred years is a fact that our descendants are not willing to admit.

The slogan "Revitalize China" has reflected this fact from the opposite side. There is no decline or decline. What about revitalization? In revitalization, we must first understand the root causes of decline. Looking for sources, some of the dross in our national culture should be completely eliminated. In the vein of our national culture, the value of creativity is an affirmation of imperialism rather than a worship of admiration. Chinese history has always been a society that advocates power rather than knowledge. All masters who have created great and brilliant works in history (such as Chinese classical architecture) are often infamous, and the prestige of those brilliant civilizations belongs to the ruler of that dynasty. The true masters were only the master craftsmen and coolies in the eyes of successive rulers. Our national culture lacks a mechanism and gene for advocating individuality and advocating human creative value.

Reporter: What do you think is the way to change this situation?

Chen: The culture of a nation must be given a new glory by the efforts of several generations through education. Comrade Deng Xiaoping was the chief designer of our nation's well-deserved identity. From his grasp of education and his grasping of children, it should be said that he has saved the Chinese nation. But then there is a question of what to teach and how to teach. Now that it is time to clear up educational ideas, systems, and educational content, the talents that we cultivate are often skilled in routine and skilled arts. However, they are lacking in creative spirit and creative thinking. The lack of individuality and creativity is precisely the spirit of our national culture. Fatal crux of the matter.

Reporter: What do you think is the function of establishing a “design capital” government?

Chen: If you only think that there are several graphic designers in Shenzhen, including talents in music and other culture categories, who have won several awards at home and abroad, they have a certain influence in the country. Therefore, it is treated as a city image project. It doesn't make much sense. The reason why I mention the concept of "big design" is to provide more attention, support, and input from the depth of theory and strategic vision. In addition, it should be given to those who have truly academic accomplishments, international perspectives and forward-looking types of experts and scholars to have a certain right to speak and participate in major decision-making rights and even the right to make a decision. If we can make some practical measures, it will have real significance. (Text / Yang Qing)