The medal creativity and mascot design are all from Guangzhou! Counting the "Guangzhou Elements" of the Beijing Winter Olympics
As the time moves into 2022, the Beijing Winter Olympics have also entered the countdown. Although Guangzhou, located in Lingnan, has no snow all year round, it gave birth to the Beijing Winter Olympic mascot "Ice Pier", which also provided inspiration for the jade element of the Winter Olympic medals.
On January 4, at the press conference of the first Bay Area Ice and Snow Culture Festival in Nanguo Flower City, Cao Xue, dean of the School of Visual Arts and Design of the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and chief designer of the mascot "Ice Pier" of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, and Li Minyong, president of the South Vietnam King Museum, talked about Guangzhou's cultural contributions to the Beijing Winter Olympics, saying that "this is the pride of our Guangzhou".
There is no snow in Guangzhou, but Guangzhou's culture is the icing on the cake for this ice and snow sports event.
The mascot "Ice Pier" comes from the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts
The mascot of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, "Ice Pier", is a smart and cute panda, designed by a 14-person design team from Guangzhou led by Cao Xue, dean of the School of Visual Arts and Design of the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts (hereinafter referred to as "Guangmei").
Why have southerners not seen ice and snow, but been able to design a mascot for the Winter Olympics?
This is a question that Cao Xue has been asked countless times. He recalled the original design process, "When we received the design task, it was only 19 days before the deadline, and we quickly formed a team of 14 people and made 15 sets of plans in 19 days to send to Beijing." When the 'Top 10' program came out, we learned that of the more than 5,000 works in 38 countries around the world, three of us entered the top ten, which was inevitable. ”
Cao Xue mentioned that some people commented on this: "Guangzhou is the forefront of reform and opening up. Cao Xue believes that Guangzhou's open, innovative culture and urban environment have become a source of artistic creation.
So why did the "ice pier" finally stand out? Cao Xue interprets it from its cultural, artistic and commercial aspects. Because the mascot debuted to clearly represent the national image, the design team chose the image of the panda that has a sense of identity all over the world; and because it is the mascot of the Winter Olympics, it gives the panda image an ice shell with a sense of technology.
The plush panda with an ice shell in its coat conforms to the law of contrast and unity of art: one hard and one soft, cold and warm, rigid and soft, and condensed together in the "ice pier".
Artistry has also given the "ice pier" commerciality, and the current image of the "ice pier" has been widely loved by people since its publication. According to data, the derivative income of the mascot of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games exceeded 20 billion yuan, and Cao Xue also placed expectations on the "ice pier".
The medal design creative reference is the jade bi excavated from the tomb of the King of Nanyue
On October 26 this year, the medals for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics were announced. The front of the medal is shaped by a ring, which is inspired by the traditional string pattern. On the officially released materials, it is clearly stated that the design creativity refers to the jade bi excavated from the tomb of the King of Nanyue.
"That night, the people of Nambo boiled over, my colleagues and I were very excited, and this glory will always be in our hearts." Li Minyong, president of the Museum of The King of South Vietnam, said.
He introduced that there are 244 sets of jade excavated from the tomb of the King of Nanyue, which are mainly divided into categories such as funerary jade, which can be described as the grand view of Han jade. A total of 71 pieces of Yubi were excavated from the tomb. From the decoration point of view, they are divided into plain surface, three-zone ornamentation and other categories, obviously the three-zone ornament is the most complex and exquisite, but also the highest level of jade bi, a total of 5 pieces.
"In the officially released materials, the Winter Olympic medal design refers to the three districts of the jade bi excavated from the tomb, the number D54, this cultural relic is currently on display at the National Museum of China, there is a similar ornament, larger, in our internal called Bi Wang number D49 jade bi, in the museum's wang tomb exhibition area basic display display, you can go to the museum to see the style." Li Minyong said.
"Yubi is one of the most important ceremonial instruments in ancient China, considered to be the symbol of heaven and the medium of communication between heaven and man, I believe that the medals of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games use Jade Bi as a design material, with the highest specifications of jade in Chinese culture to praise Olympic athletes, is to perfectly combine China's excellent traditional culture, Chinese aesthetics and Olympic spirit, reflecting the good wishes of the world." Li Minyong said.
[Southern Daily, Southern + reporter] Zheng Huizi, Zhou Fuqi, Guan Yuqing
【Photo】 Liang Wenxiang
【Photo】 Liang Jucong
【Editing】He Zhihao
【Author】 Zheng Huizi; Liang Wenxiang; Liang Jucong; Zhou Fuqi; He Zhihao; Guan Yuqing
【Source】 Southern Press Media Group South + client