From the simple "sticker" production of tourism souvenirs, to the use of the museum's rich cultural and creative resources and platforms into cultural and creative products, the museum's cultural creation has gradually developed from version 1.0 to version 4.0.
From "barbaric growth" all the way to the popularity of wonderful ideas, what kind of transformation has the museum's cultural creation undergone?
Version 1.0
Photocopied artifact impressions, simply superimposed
This is the initial stage of the "debut" of the museum's cultural creation, and they play the role of the museum's tourism souvenirs. More common are imitations of cultural relics, as well as mugs, T-shirts, post-it notes, bookmarks, notebooks, refrigerator stickers and other small daily necessities or stationery.
The 1.0 version of the museum cultural creation usually imitates the cultural relics in a certain proportion, or prints the image of the cultural relics, the museum architectural pattern, and the elements of the logo directly onto the product. Among them, imitations only have pure ornamental functions, lack practical value, and high pricing, and often have audiences shouting "can't afford it". The cultural and creative design of printing patterns is generally relatively simple, but it is directly and mechanically copied patterns, and there is no innovation. As a result, cultural and creative prices are often polarized, and it is impossible to take care of the consumption needs of different groups in layers. In addition, this version of the cultural and creative variety is limited, the homogenization is serious, and the sales are mainly sold in museums.
In general, the cultural creation of version 1.0 has a relatively small cross-border range, and the attraction of the products to the public is insufficient. For a long time, this was the main way of presenting the museum's cultural creation. In fact, to this day, there are still quite a few small and medium-sized museums whose cultural creations are still stuck in the 1.0 version.
Version 2.0
Extract cultural relics elements and create a creative life
In 2018, the museum's cultural creation entered a special turning point. When the "Guiding Opinions on Further Strengthening the Work of Cultural Relics" was issued, 92 museums became the first batch of pilot units for the development of cultural and creative products of museums nationwide. This means that the cultural and creative industries have officially become the "standard" of museums at the policy and practical levels, and the cultural creation of museums has entered the 2.0 version from version 1.0.
For example, the Chaozhu headphones launched by the Palace Museum in Beijing cleverly use the similarity of the appearance of the Chaozhu and the headphones. Some people joke that putting on the headphones is like an instant "Lafayette possession"; for example, the "One Man in the World" canvas bag of the Shanghai Museum extracted the signature painting of Song Huizong in "Liu Ya Lu Yan Tu" and designed it, and the canvas bag made of it is very personalized. Cultural creation is less "cold" and more "fresh".
The 2.0 version of the museum's cultural creation, the product use scene gradually came to life, and one by one cultural creations that have both appearance and practicality have become popular. Tape, ruler, mobile phone holder, canvas bag, umbrella... These products are quite individual and fashionable, which not only meet the aesthetic needs of modern people, but also meet people's sense of pleasure of "traveling through time and space", and successfully attract the public's attention to museum culture.
As Shan Jixiang, president of the Chinese Cultural Relics Society and former president of the Palace Museum, said, "People will like it if they extract cultural resources and connect with people's lives." "This version of the museum's cultural creation, in addition to stationery, daily necessities, but also began to have new attempts in electronic products, food, skin care and other categories." From the physical objects that can be touched to the visible creativity, from the functional positioning to the cultural taste, from the interesting form of expression to the rich cultural connotation, behind the continuous "new" of cultural and creative products is the museum's "upper heart" for transmitting history and culture. More and more cultural and creative products have gone out of the door of the museum and "lived" into the daily life of ordinary people.
For the 2.0 version of cultural creation, the museum strictly controls the quality of cultural and creative products on the one hand, and consciously sets the price of cultural and creative products on the other hand to meet the consumption needs of different groups. At the same time, sales channels have also expanded from a single in-store counter to network marketing.
Version 3.0
Establish cultural relics brand, cross-border alliance
When the museum's cultural creation was upgraded to version 3.0, it entered the "big step" cross-border stage. Cultural creation began to break the dimensional wall, play with popular culture, and gradually move closer to the "national tide". With the deepening of cross-border brand licensing cooperation in museums, a variety of refreshing "museum +" have emerged: + catering, + technology, + finance, + beauty, + tourism, + games...
For example, the "Thousand Autumns of Beauty" series of lipsticks jointly launched by the National Museum of China and L'Oréal will correspond to five "star color numbers" and five "classical beauties" to integrate the sense of Chinese classical elegance into beauty; the mobile game "E-truth Miaobi Qianshan" jointly developed by the Palace Museum and NetEase Games, based on "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", players are immersed in the scene, crossing back to the great rivers and mountains of the Northern Song Dynasty in a second; Sanxingdui Museum launched the "Gushu Mengwa" series of emojis on the WeChat emoticon store, which was originally mysterious, The serious bronze mask transformed into a cute cute baby, with a fun Sichuan dialect, the style is relaxed and pleasant, triggering netizens to download; the Hunan Provincial Museum and Changsha Bank, milk tea brand "Tea Face Pleasant Color" jointly launched a credit card "Drinking Card", with the theme of Hunan Bo "Junxing Tanuki Cat Pattern Paint Plate" IP, using food topics to export history and culture...
"Ezhen Miaobi Qianshan" mobile game Photo/Micro Forbidden City
When creating the 3.0 version of the cultural creation, the museum began to pay attention to the protection and utilization of intellectual property rights. Major museums have consciously begun to establish a brand image and create a unique IP of the museum. The key to making the historical and cultural resources "alive" in the cultural creation of museums is to "have stories and cultures", and their development or design should "get inspiration from the collection".
At the same time, the museum strengthens the publicity of online sales channels. Open multi-platform sales channels such as Tmall, JD.com, and WeChat, and attach importance to online publicity and focus on maintaining brand image. For example, the Palace Museum, Shaanxi History Museum, Suzhou Museum, Sichuan Museum, etc.
On August 15, 2019, Tmall also released the "Tmall New Cultural Creation 2.0 Plan", and Jia Luo, general manager of the Tmall Platform Operation Division, said that in the next 3 years, the "treasures of the town hall" of global museums will be on Tmall and cross-border cooperation with 10,000 brands.
The 3.0 version of the museum pays more attention to the added value of cultural creation, such as the painstaking packaging box, which is enough to make the product re-grade. Many viewers regard the cultural creation of the museum as a high-quality choice for gifts to relatives and friends, which can be said to be full of popularity.
When the museum's cultural creation has developed to version 3.0, it has broadened the creative ideas of cultural creation and allowed cultural creativity to blossom in an all-round way. At this time, the museum's cultural creation has broken the traditional boundaries of physical products and extended to invisible products, and various creative linkages have emerged in an endless stream, ushering in a new cross-border style of museums. "A new era of museum cultural and creative IP has arrived," said Qiang Yue, former director of the Shaanxi History Museum.
Version 4.0
Break through the limitations of cultural relics and dig deep into the potential
The 4.0 version of the museum's cultural creation is not only for the development of the original content of the museum, but also to expand its extension and realize the creation of self-worth, which is another "upgrade and update" of the cross-border cooperation of the museum's cultural and creative.
For example, the Palace Museum Publishing House in Beijing, together with the live-action escape room game chain brand "Mystery House", launched the interactive puzzle book "Mystery Palace , Ruyi Linlang Picture Book" and "Mystery Palace 2 • Gold List Title". The book combines the culture of the Forbidden City with the classical Chinese culture, and includes relatively simple knowledge such as ritual measurement, seasonal festivals, chess and calligraphy, and five elements of gossip, which broadens the extension of museum culture. Wang Yamin, president of the Palace Publishing House, believes that it is a cross-border cultural creation that "integrates with scientific and technological innovation and multimedia", "so that the culture of the Forbidden City can better go to the society, to the public, and to the hearts of young people".
"Mystery Palace , Ruyi Linlang Picture Book"
There is also the "integration" model of Suzhou Museum, which is also an excellent case of the extension of the 4.0 version of the cultural and creative expansion museum. According to Xie Xiaoting, deputy director of Suzhou Museum, the objects of "integration" include partners in different industries, experts in different fields, and groups with different needs, including six sectors such as media, tourism, finance, and science and technology. Xie Xiaoting pointed out that such in-depth cooperation can "help museums enter the public".
Version 4.0 of museum cultural creation is an advanced stage of cross-border cooperation between museum culture and creativity. At this time, the product is no longer the 1.0 version of stationery and bags, but has dug deep into the cultural potential of the museum, and the cross-border cooperation is more systematic, scientific and has a more mature operating system. For example, the Dunhuang Research Institute divides its cultural and creative center into three sub-brands of "Such as Dunhuang", "Remembering Dunhuang" and "Dunhuang under the Stars", respectively, to excavate and interpret Dunhuang art, cooperate with foreign brands and organize public activities; integrate characteristic elements such as rebound pipa, flying sky, camel, moi, nine-colored deer, and bodhisattva into cultural creation; cross-border cooperation launches the "Digital Silk Road" plan, launches digital products such as Dunhuang animation dramas and "Dunhuang poetry towels" mini programs, and forms a new model of cultural and creative product development in the Internet era. In a way that the public likes to hear, the mural story spanning thousands of years is vividly interpreted.
Overall, the 4.0 version of the museum's cultural and creative products pays more attention to improving the influence of museum culture on society, and has a great sense of innovation and overall view. They can infinitely narrow the distance between the museum and the public, close to life, and approach thousands of households. As Li Qin, vice president of the Henan Museum, said, "Grasp the audience's heart with ancient and modern dialogue", through the innovative expression of traditional culture, the public can feel the solid core of Chinese culture, enhance cultural self-confidence, and also promote the integration and development of culture and tourism.
From version 1.0 to version 4.0
The development trend of museum cultural creation
The connotation and form of cultural and creative products are becoming more and more rich and diverse. At present, many museums are based on the cultural connotation of the museum, centering on innovation, and integrating elements with their own cultural characteristics into newly developed cultural and creative products. For example, the metal bookmark developed by dunhuang research institute selects the most representative elements of the dunhuang murals, such as nine-colored deer, flying sky, baoxiang flower, three-eared rabbit, etc., reflecting the characteristics of the Dunhuang mural patterns are rich in patterns and brilliant colors, and through the exquisite product information card presented with the bookmark, the prototype of the mural behind the product is vividly and concisely introduced.
On the other hand, museums are gradually beginning to innovate product forms in line with fashion trends. For example, combined with the rise of the "blind box culture" in recent years, the Henan Museum has launched an archaeological blind box, which is loved by many young people, and every time it is new, it is in short supply. The archeological blind box does not simply copy the form of the blind box, but adds the element of "archaeology". The imitation "treasure" is wrapped up and the "archaeological artifact" Luoyang shovel is given away for consumers to "dig the treasure", the whole process is novel and interesting.
Major museums have gradually begun to combine online and offline creative marketing. With the help of the Internet, the museum improves the dissemination and attention of the cultural and creative industry and the museum, tells the story of cultural creation in a relatively relaxed way, and carries out the creative marketing of the cultural and creative industry through the combination of offline exhibitions and performances and online stage broadcasting and promotion. Since 2019, the "National Silk Hanfu Festival" held by the China Silk Museum has stipulated a clear theme, from "Ming ZhihuaZhang" to "Song ZhiyaYun" to "Tang Zhi Grace", focusing on the annual theme, offline to carry out a series of activities such as professional tour, expert lecture, cultural relics appreciation, Hanfu night and so on. At the same time, the use of Weibo, b station, Douyin and other platforms to attract Hanfu culture enthusiasts to deeply participate, stimulate young people's enthusiasm for Hanfu culture. The Silk Museum uses this activity to promote traditional culture at the same time, but also to promote the marketing and promotion of related cultural and creative products, such as the Hanfu catwalk activity, creating many "Hanfu explosions", and the museum also launched the joint Hanfu of the museum in a timely manner.
In addition, in addition to the power of the museum itself, the power of the network is also indispensable. Last year, the news of sanxingdui unearthing new cultural relics attracted the attention of many people. Sanxingdui Museum grasped this hot spot and took advantage of this "east wind" to launch the "bronze mask" ice cream.
Sanxingdui "bronze flavored" ice cream
The cultural and creative industry has gradually stepped out of cultural and cultural institutions, uniting the forces of all parties to build a new industrial form. In terms of the promotion and sales of cultural and creative products, cultural and expo institutions closely follow the outlet and combine with the current popular promotion and sales methods. For example, before the "Double 11" in 2020 and 2021, cultural and creative online stores such as the Forbidden City Taobao and the Flagship Store of the Shanghai Museum also began to try to live stream goods and participate in the marketing of shopping festivals.
In addition, the IP authorization and cross-border joint name of museums are becoming a new development trend. In terms of IP authorization, the "Operational Guidelines for Copyright, Trademark Rights and Brand Authorization of Museum Collection Resources (Trial)" issued by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage in 2019 made a relatively clear definition of the authorized content of museum resources, and realized the "loosening" of the authorization of museum collection resources in terms of policy. At the same time, cross-border joint names have also developed vigorously, and a large number of cultural and creative products have penetrated into multiple consumption fields in the name of museums, and a number of "cross-circle cultural and creative products" have become explosive models. The joint name of the flagship store of Dunhuang Museum and the sports brand Li Ning combines Dunhuang elements with sportswear, which has caught up with the current popular "national style" wave.
The museum cultural and creative industry began to try to go abroad. At present, the mainland museum cultural and creative industry is mainly focused on the domestic market, although the rapid development, but compared with the British Museum cultural and creative industry, which is relatively mature at home and abroad, there is still a great distance. Nowadays, the cultural and creative products of mainland museums go abroad to participate in large-scale international exhibitions. For example, in 2017, for the first time, China's cultural and creative products were displayed overseas, in 2018, the theme display activity of "Chinese Cultural and Creative Ideas" was carried out at the International Stationery and Office Supplies Exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany, and the "China Today" Chinese Museum Cultural and Creative Products Exhibition and Sales was held in Bangkok, Thailand in 2019.
In general, the museum cultural and creative industry has developed rapidly, and with the support of relevant policies, the museum has united multiple forces to continuously promote the quality and upgrading of the cultural and creative industry. The museum's cultural and creative product development team is constantly expanding, and various new cultural and creative products have been launched, leading the new fashion of national tide consumption. At present, thousands of museums on the mainland have launched countless cultural and creative products, some of which are still in the "small white" stage of version 1.0, and some have taken the lead in evolving to version 4.0. Of course, there are still many problems in the development of cultural and creative culture in museums, such as the homogenization of cultural and creative products is still relatively serious, the quality of some products needs to be improved, the form of cross-border joint branding is still relatively single, the mature and complete cultural and creative industry chain has not yet been formed, and the strategy of cultural and creative industry going out is still in its infancy, which also needs to be paid attention to.