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Preface
Although the popularity of computers and mobile phones has made the former mainstream streaming TV set less popular, it is undeniable that TV is still an important media tool for us to this day.
In particular, CCTV is still the authoritative existence for us to understand major events at home and abroad, as well as major national policies.
However, do you know that the CCTV logo we see today is actually designed by the Japanese.
The tricolor butterfly that was replaced
If there are elderly people in the family, then they may remember that CCTV used to look like a three-color butterfly.
Why was this butterfly badge replaced?
The story also begins on May 1, 1958, when Beijing TV was officially established.
Although television sets were very rare in those days, the total number of TV sets in China may not exceed 10,000, and the content programs are actually relatively rough.
Needless to say, the colors are all black and white, and as for the station logo, there is no one, and even many times, the subtitles that appear in the program are handwritten.
But even so, thanks to the careful arrangement of those literary and art workers, the seemingly humble CCTV still won praise and became the most important channel for Chinese to understand information in the following decades.
The time came to 1978, in this year, with the continuous development of Chinese TV programs, in addition to Beijing TV, other local TV stations also stepped onto the screen.
As a result, the central government once again made adjustments and renamed Beijing TV to CCTV.
Later, due to the development of reform and opening up, China's entertainment and cultural industry developed rapidly, and television sets also ushered in rapid development, and the programs were even more diverse and explosively growing.
In order to strive for more ratings, the program TV stations in various places are also showing their own talents, striving to create a more impactful visual feast for the audience.
In this case, CCTV must also do a good job of packaging, so in order to be able to design a distinctive visual identity for itself, CCTV released a competition to the society.
In the end, the three-color butterfly designed by Mr. Zhang Desheng successfully became the symbol of CCTV.
It should be noted that this Zhang Desheng is not an ordinary person, he is the veteran of CCTV, and the first version of "News Network", which was launched in 1978, was produced by Mr. Zhang Desheng.
The three-color butterfly designed by Zhang Desheng has also become a bosom friend of countless audiences, accompanied by the three-color butterfly, Chinese watched the first World Cup and the first Spring Festival Gala on TV, witnessing countless important historical moments.
But when the time came to 1998, Zhang Desheng almost broke up with CCTV, and the two sides even went to court for a time.
What's going on?
Tampered butterfly logo
In 1998, CCTV, which felt that it should keep pace with the times, tampered with the butterfly logo without notifying Zhang Desheng.
This made Zhang Desheng very angry, and after communicating with the leader to no avail, Zhang Desheng was even more angry and sued CCTV in court.
In the complaint, Zhang Desheng angrily said that he let CCTV use his work for free, and he didn't charge any fees for so many years, even if CCTV changed his work without notifying himself, this is naked infringement!
In this regard, CCTV is also vibrant, they said, first of all, when creating this logo, Zhang Desheng was a staff member of CCTV, and the background of his logo creation was also tasked by his superiors.
Therefore, although the three-color butterfly is a work of Zhang Desheng, it does not belong to his private property, but to a service work, and his own use and modification are not infringing.
In the end, the court decided that Zhang Desheng lost the case after arguments between the two parties.
I don't know if you have thought of something similar at this point?
In 1999, when this lawsuit landed, Chen Peisi and Zhu Shimao went to court against CCTV because they were dissatisfied with CCTV selling their works from CDs without their consent.
In the end, although the two won the victory and received 330,000 yuan in compensation, they also bid farewell to the CCTV stage completely and were once blocked!
Having said that, although CCTV and Zhang Desheng won the lawsuit, but CCTV's reputation collapsed, many people accused CCTV of eating too ugly, in order to reduce these negative effects, so CCTV decided to abandon the double butterfly, and in 1999 launched a bid campaign to the world.
In the end, a Japanese man won the CCTV logo design project named Akira Hasegawa.
At that time, the work he submitted to China was an acronym for "China Central Television" and a two-line image.
Objectively speaking, this station logo still looks very good, simple and atmospheric, and the two smooth lines meet with each other, and the harmony and unity are also quite in line with China's yin and yang culture.
So then again, who is this Japanese designer who can be recognized by CCTV?
Recognized as a master of design
Akira Hasegawa was born in 1947 in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, and is a well-known design master in Japan.
How famous is he in Japan?
Since the 80s of the 20th century, he has become one of the top design masters in Japan, and famous TV stations in Japan have been proud to invite him to set up their own TV promos.
For example, the program opening and commercial opening of NHK TV in Japan, which he designed, won the Best Work Award for Japanese Folk Works.
Before being asked to help China Central Television (CCTV) design its logo in 1999, he also designed a poster for the organizers of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, which also received critical acclaim.
Throughout his life, Akira Hasegawa has created more than 4,000 works, won the Japanese Folk Grand Prix 17 times, and won many other international awards.
So, did the logo he designed for CCTV pass the test?
Although Hasegawa is Japanese, he does know a lot about Chinese culture, as can be seen from his design drawings.
The two curves, which flow like streams, are the inspiration he gets from Chinese Tai Chi, where yin and yang grow and mingle.
The intersection of the two lines represents the blending of Chinese and Western cultures.
As for the red C at the beginning, red not only represents Chinese red, but also highlights the core position of CCTV TV.
It should be said that the design is quite good, and those who resist the icon often fall on the Japanese designer.
In their opinion, China can't find people who can design icons, and why do they have to use Japanese people?
Although I don't have a good impression of Japan as a country, I have to admit that the Japanese do have some unique characteristics, such as architecture.
When we think of Japanese architecture, we probably think of cramped Japanese housing.
It is true that there is not much to praise about the traditional housing of the Japanese people, except that it is cheap and earthquake-resistant, but in the world, Japanese architects are among the best in the world.
Isn't this my compliment to them, do you know the Nobel Prize in architecture, the Pritzker Prize?
As of 2022, there are a total of 44 architects who have won the award, and seven of them are Japanese, but at present, there is only one in China - Wang Shu.
This shows the international status of Japanese architects in this profession.
Many landmarks in Chinese cities were designed by these Japanese, such as the International Design Center, Aurora Museum, Pearl Art Museum in Shanghai, and the Dadu Art Museum and Qihao Art Museum in Beijing.
Not to mention the works of many Japanese architects in China, even in the United States, which is known as the world's largest power, there are many Japanese people there.
For example, in the 911 attacks, the twin towers that were destroyed by terrorists were designed by a Japanese American.
Even South Korea, which has always been the most hostile to the Japanese and is constantly clamoring for war with the Japanese, has many works by Japanese architects.
So what should we make of this phenomenon?
In this regard, Mr. Lu Xun has actually pointed it out to us a long time ago, that is, "Take-it-ism".
How should we look at foreign things?
Of course, it is to critically absorb those good things that are helpful to us, do not hesitate, we must learn them, and we have no time to take care of what so-called public opinion.
For example, we all know that the atomic bomb was first built by the Americans, and after the atomic bomb and the explosion of Hiroshima, many scientists believed that they should give up the research on the atomic bomb because the atomic bomb was so inhumane.
But think about it, if it weren't for the atomic bomb developed by New China through gritted teeth, would we still be able to have a happy life today?
This is true for defense technology, it is also true for buildings and the like, as long as it is good for us, it doesn't matter who it is, but remember, it is about bringing in the good, not turning yourself into a garbage recycling bin.
Resources:
1. Baidu Encyclopedia - China Central Television - National Television of the People's Republic of China
2.西陆网——央视换logo 台标变迁史
3. Baidu Encyclopedia - "Hasegawa Akira - Japanese Artist"