Talking about the reason why people love "ice piers", designer Cao Xue believes that it has a lot to do with the "opposing and unified beauty" in it.
"These days, a lot of friends call and ask if I still have an 'ice pier', but I don't have it myself." In an interview with the "Global People" reporter, Cao Xue, the designer of the "Ice Pier", laughed.
As the mascot of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the "ice pier" burst out of the circle, so that "a pier is difficult to find" - not only its plush toys were sold out, but related handmade, badges and other products also showed sold out. Many netizens strongly demanded: Please realize "one household and one pier" and "one pier per capita" as soon as possible.
The popularity of the "ice pier" exceeded the expectations of Cao Xue and the design team.
"As far as the 'ice pier' is concerned, whether it is a market reaction or a social reaction, it has reached a cultural, artistic and commercial fusion." Cao Xue said, "When it comes to commerciality, many people feel that artists and designers should not think about this, thinking that it is too vulgar to talk about money. In fact, any Olympic mascot, as a goodwill ambassador to communicate with people around the world, spread culture, is bound to be recognized by the market, that is, commonly known as 'explosive model'. Because it also has a commercial purpose, that is, to rely on the money earned by derivatives to continue to support the Olympic Games. It is also a support for the cause of sports. ”
19 days, 14 people, more than 50 plans
In October 2018, the Beijing Winter Olympics Mascot Publicity Team came to the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts to conduct a mascot collection and publicity, hoping to clearly convey the requirements and concepts of the Winter Olympics for mascots to more design teams.
This was the last stop of the group's national tour, 19 days before the deadline for the Winter Olympic mascot call.
Cao Xue attended the lecture and asked why the delegation came to the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts so late. The propaganda team told him that there was little snow in Guangdong, that children in the south had never seen ice and snow, and that they had doubts about whether Guangdong designers could design mascots for ice and snow sports.
This moment aroused the side of Cao Xue's bones that did not accept defeat. He told the preaching team: Don't worry, maybe the children in the south have not seen ice and snow, but because of this, they may be more imaginative and creative about ice and snow.
Cao Xue immediately decided to form a design team. "There are 7 teachers and 7 graduate students in the team, including me and Liu Pingyun, and we are from different majors and play different roles in the team. For example, Qian Lei, who served as a 'military master' and picked mistakes for the design plan, he Ge, who took on the responsibility of sending manuscripts as the only male student..."
Cao Xue (third from right) and team members in the studio.
The deadline is just around the corner, and the day after the lecture, Cao Xue's team held their first creative meeting. After continuous struggle, more than a dozen people came up with more than 50 plans, and Cao Xue selected 16 of them and sent them to Beijing.
This was followed by a long and anxious wait. On the eve of Chinese New Year's Eve 2019, Cao Xue received a notice that three of the works they submitted were shortlisted.
One of the finalists is "Rock Sugar Gourd". "The rock sugar gourd is a snack in the north, it has a grounded cultural attribute, the key is that the layer of ice shell and sugar coating on its body is related to the ice and snow sports of the Winter Olympics." Cao Xue said that the other two shortlisted works are firecrackers dressed in beautiful clothes and two kick kick combinations, square and round ice cubes.
The shortlisting of works is a great encouragement for designers. However, this is only the beginning of the creative road.
"Paint a giant panda like no other"
The day after receiving the notice of shortlisting, Cao Xue rushed to Beijing to attend the seminar.
Among the three shortlisted works, the idea of "Rock Sugar Gourd" was widely praised, but it was only a snack, not enough to represent the image of a big country, and the Beijing Winter Olympic Organizing Committee Revised The Expert Group suggested that Cao Xue's team revise the "Rock Sugar Gourd" plan.
Cao Xue led the team to work, and the day before the 2019 Lantern Festival, handed over the second revision plan. The modification team's suggestion this time is to retain the ice shell idea and try to design around other rare or characteristic items.
The design team made many attempts to change the image in the ice shell to Lantern, dumplings, elk, tigers, rabbits... Ideas are constantly being proposed and overturned, the team even has a fierce dispute over the design drawings, and the air in the studio is getting more and more solidified. "I'm like a lubricant that's always calming people's emotions and helping them persevere." Cao Xue said.
In March of the same year, the revision expert group suggested that animal characteristics be more prominent, further reflect the characteristics of Chinese culture, and put forward the proposal that the mascot design scheme should be integrated into the Internet, new technologies, fashion culture and other elements, clarifying the direction of deepening and modifying cartoon animals, anthropomorphism, science and technology, and three-dimensionality. In the end, Cao Xue's team selected the national treasure giant panda.
·“ Ice Pier" image design manuscript.
"The mascot of the Winter Olympics wants to send a signal to the world that 'who I am', and only the giant panda can do it." Because it is unique to China, it is our national treasure and is loved by people all over the world. Cao Xue said.
However, using a giant panda as a mascot is too commonplace, and designing a distinctive "giant panda" has become the biggest test in front of the team.
"The mission of the mascot is to convey auspiciousness, carry and spread love, so when designing the 'ice pier', I hope to convey a warm feeling." Cao Xue said.
In order to make the image of the giant panda look more appropriate and pleasing, the team members flew to the Wolong Giant Panda Nature Reserve in Sichuan for field observation. "The harvest of this field observation is very great, and our team found that the young panda walked in the inner eight characters, and the head and body were different from the adult pandas, which looked more cute and cute. The tail of a giant panda is not black as we perceive it, but white. Therefore, we have improved it based on the image of the juvenile giant panda. ”
Influenced by the "Ice Ribbon" of the National Speed Skating Hall, the team also designed a five-ring color "Ice Ribbon" around the head of the giant panda, which resembles an astronaut wearing a scientific and technological coat, and its meaning is "creating extraordinary, exploring the future", reflecting the pursuit of excellence, leading the times, and the infinite possibilities for the future.
Designed to "target 9-year-olds"
Cao Xue told the "Global People" reporter that designers should think about who this design project is designed for every minute. "I've learned that the target consumer for any Olympic mascot is a kid around 9 years old. Therefore, from the beginning of the design to the final completion of the "ice pier", it is firmly aimed at 9-year-old children. ”
Coincidentally, Cao Xue's younger son was 9 years old at the time, and his son's preferences became a basis for judgment. "Our design work is kept secret, and my son doesn't know what we're doing. I took him to the studio and showed him the design images on the computer, some of the 'ice piers' were a little taller, some were shorter, some pandas had ice shells, some had no ice shells... We also designed a snow panda and put it together and let him pick out his favorite one. As a result, he immediately selected a giant panda with an ice shell. ”
After the basic model of the "ice pier" was determined, the design team did two more re-checks in China and Switzerland, and after determining that there was no error, the design plan of the giant panda with ice shell was reported to the Beijing Winter Olympic Organizing Committee.
In July 2019, the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee held a blind judging event at a gymnasium in Beijing, inviting 240 primary school students to vote for cartoon images on display, including "ice piers". In the end, the "Ice Pier" received 230 votes.
So far, it took 10 months and more than 1,000 modifications, and the image of the "ice pier" designed based on the giant panda stood out from nearly 6,000 works from 35 countries.
On September 17, the mascots of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games were officially released at the Beijing Shougang Ice Hockey Hall, officially announcing that the mascot of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics was "Ice Pier" and the mascot of the Winter Paralympic Games was "Snow Rongrong".
When the news was announced, Cao Xue's joyful and excited mood was self-evident. "At that time, I only felt a 'hiss' in my head, and my eyes were as white as a snow curtain, which felt very unreal, like I was dreaming, and I didn't react for a while." Then my tears welled up. ”
IOC President Thomas Bach said at the mascot launch ceremony that the first feeling of seeing the mascot was "fantastically chosen". He told Cao Xue: "The Beijing Winter Olympics mascot combines the essence and characteristics of China and Chinese people, and will surely become an outstanding ambassador for the 2022 Winter Olympics in China and Beijing." ”
Looking back on the road of creation, Cao Xue has both the joy of success and the feeling of hardship. "We are like warriors going down one hill after another, and after reaching the top, we look back at the road under our feet and feel that we have done something worth remembering."
"Holding the 'ice pier' in your hand is like holding a warmth"
Talking about the reason why people love the "ice pier", Cao Xue believes that it has a lot to do with the "opposite and unified beauty" in it.
When designing the "ice pier", he focused on the visual aesthetic and touch. "We chose the ice crystal shell of the 'ice sugar gourd', the ice shell is the soul of the 'ice pier' design, the ice shell symbolizes the Winter Olympics and the ice and snow sports, and the ice shell is under the furry doll giant panda, this opposition and unity of beauty, all of a sudden hit the softest place in the heart, holding the 'ice pier' is like holding a warmth."
Cao Xue has his own opinion on design: "The thing that 'design' does is to make four or two thousand pounds. The word 'design' in Chinese characters is very subtle, it is next to the word, not the 'skill' next to the handle. 'Words' represent opinions and expressions, to be wonderful, to be ingenious. ”
Athletes who win awards at the Winter Olympics receive Phnom Penh "ice piers".
The popularity of peripheral products around the Winter Olympics shows the soft power of Chinese culture behind it, and it is also a way for people to release their keen attention to the Winter Olympics. The unveiling of the mascot of each Olympic Games has attracted the attention of the world and become the highlight of the current Olympic Games.
At the 1972 Munich Olympics, the first appearance of the mascot, the German Bavarian Hound, represented the tenacity, persistence and agility of athletes. At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the image design of the mascot Fuwa applied the expression of traditional Chinese art, showing China's splendid culture, implying the transmission of friendship, peace, positive spirit and the desire of people and nature to live in harmony with all parts of the world. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the mascot robot Miraitova is a fusion of traditional and cutting-edge information.
For many people, peripheral products such as mascots leave a unique and unforgettable memory of the Winter Olympics, and the same is true of "ice piers".
Looking back at the Beijing Winter Olympics in the future, people will remember the concept conveyed by Cao Xue's team in the design: "'Ice pier' always reflects two keywords, one is 'warm', hoping to bring warmth to everyone in the cold winter; the other is 'love', hoping to convey love to the world through design and tell the story of China." ”
Column Editor-in-Chief: Qin Hong Text Editor: Dong Siyun Title Image Source: Visual China Photo Editor: Xiang Jianying
Source: Author: Global People Jintai Huanhuan