China news agency, Chengdu, June 9 th Question: Why does the Universiade torch resonate across borders?
— — Interview with Xu Liaoyuan, the torch designer of the 31st World Universiade.
Author Yue Yitong Shan Peng
"Through the exchange of sports art, even if it is a small torch, the audience all over the world can feel the emotion and cultural connotation that the artist has poured into it, thus generating empathy." Xu Liaoyuan, a design artist, director of Chengdu Xuliaoyuan Museum of Modern Design and Art, and the torch designer of the 31st Summer Universiade (hereinafter referred to as Chengdu Universiade), said in an exclusive interview with China News Service’s "East-West Question" recently that the creation of sports art represented by torch design reflects the cultural characteristics of a region and an era, which is conducive to enhancing cultural exchanges in the world.
The interview record is summarized as follows:
China News Service reporter: The torch is the spiritual symbol of the Olympic Movement, and the torch relay is its unique literary form. What kind of cultural connotation has been injected into the design of Chengdu Universiade torch "Rong Huo"?
Xu yuyuan:As the carrier of the Olympic flame, the Olympic torch ceremony has a history of more than 2700 years. In recent decades, every Olympic Games will give birth to a new torch with both artistic creation and cultural connotation. The torch symbolizes the pursuit of "higher, faster and stronger" sportsmanship and is an important cultural heritage left by the Olympic Games to the world. The Universiade, known as the "Little Olympics", also continued the tradition of the Olympic torch ceremony.
The torch relay ceremony was held for the first time at the Berlin Olympic Games in 1936. Since then, the torch held high by torchbearers has come into public view, and people have begun to care about the color, shape, material and cultural connotation of the torch design.
With the development of the times, the torch design is constantly innovating, and at the same time, it has gradually formed a distinct design principle: it can not only reflect the theme of the Olympic Games, but also show the image of the host country. Therefore, in addition to the Olympic spirit, a small torch should also bear strong regional characteristics and rich humanistic colors. For example, the torch "Xiangyun" of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games is full of oriental charm. The moire inscription carved on the upper part of the torch symbolizes the rise of Xiangyun, and the color scheme of lacquer red and the shape of paper scroll make this torch a symbol that embodies the Millennium Chinese civilization.
The landing of the Summer Universiade in Chengdu is an opportunity to convey Chengdu’s voice to the world and promote Tianfu culture. Chengdu Universiade torch "Ronghuo" took more than 400 days from writing design to scheme release, during which several schemes were changed. The torch is a very small carrier, and it is difficult to carry too much information. Therefore, in the design scheme of "Ronghuo", we only captured the cultural symbolic elements of "Land of Abundance" such as the giant panda and the sun god bird.
Sichuan is the hometown of giant pandas. On the front of Ronghuo, there is a naive giant panda with his hands around the torch, showing the optimistic and tolerant cultural attitude of Chengdu people. The design of "Rong Huo" also pays tribute to the ancient Shu civilization. For example, the gesture of giant pandas embracing each other looks like the bronze statue of Sanxingdui from the side; The fire exit is embedded with the pattern of the ancient Shu totem sun god bird, and four god birds carry the sun and fly, which is the best interpretation of the ancient Shu ancestors yearning for the starry sky more than 3000 years ago. In addition, the overall shape of the torch refers to the ivory unearthed from Jinsha site; The torch crown is undulating, symbolizing the rolling mountains of Bashu land; The torch also adopts a gradient of cold and warm colors, which shows the burning passion of the youthful power of the Universiade.
China News Service reporter: What are the similarities and differences between the eastern and western torch design concepts? How does the torch show the mutual learning between eastern and western civilizations?
Xu yuyuan:The whole history of human creation is a life history as well as a creation history. Everyone and every creative group are creating an ideal way of life, and all the cultural evidences left behind today are the embodiment of this life history. There are differences in the understanding of life between the East and the West. Westerners use knives, forks and spoons, while orientals use chopsticks, which reflects the different wisdom of human beings in the East and the West.
In terms of art, oriental art is not a complicated decoration, but a pure and highly refined one. For example, oriental freehand brushwork ink painting is a natural expressionist art, which can strongly express water without drawing water; Song porcelain conveys the oriental expression of life ideal through the washing and purification of its shape. I call this pure design language and oriental way of looking at things "visual poetry", which means that design should be as pure as poetry.
However, world civilizations have always learned from each other. Oriental culture is influenced by western culture, and it is difficult for western modern and contemporary art to produce excellent works if it is not influenced by oriental painting or the concept of creation. From the perspective of human beings, art is the expression of human commonness, whether in the East or in the West. Therefore, art has no borders, and overseas audiences can understand the artistic creation of the East. Aesthetics is the art of intuitive experience and visual art, but if aesthetics is regarded as knowledge feedback, it will cause obstacles to understanding. Artistic aesthetics should return to its ontological language state, and use intuition to understand and create the experience of life, rather than making logical analysis based on knowledge system.
When people see beautiful things, they are moved by life without obstacles. When they see a torch, first of all, they will intuitively face the torch design and produce real psychological feelings; Secondly, they can understand the symbolic meaning of giant panda, bamboo, sun god bird and other symbols by understanding the meaning, and further understand the connotation of Tianfu culture.
China News Service reporter: How does the sports art represented by the torch of the Universiade "Rong Huo" show the confidence of Chinese civilization and culture?
Xu yuyuan:Chinese civilization, which has a long history of thousands of years, is still alive today. Even if it encounters difficulties in the long river of circulating years, there is always a voice to awaken it. This strong vitality is cultural self-confidence deeply rooted in the blood of the Chinese nation, and the continuity of Chinese civilization itself is its greatness.
At the same time, don’t misunderstand the inner meaning of cultural self-confidence, not to say that simply misappropriating ancient patterns and symbols in contemporary life is the best way to embody cultural self-confidence. This is not a simple problem of misappropriation. All the pioneering, avant-garde and innovative things created by Chinese today are new contributions to the world. This kind of cultural self-confidence comes from bone and blood, and naturally manifests itself in all aspects of human activities, including sports art. The future and development of Chinese civilization are the increasingly diverse and rich forms and the pace of continuous progress.
Although China is an ancient country with a civilization history of more than 5,000 years, it is hoped that the world can see a youthful China and a future China through the Universiade. Today, we don’t need to prove the greatness of Chinese civilization, but we should show the future of Chinese civilization through today’s creation.
China News Service reporter: How can the creation of sports art, represented by torch design, enhance the world cultural exchange?
Xu yuyuan:Sports events are a gathering of human beings. No matter where they come from, no matter what color they are, everyone gathers together. This is a platform for the coexistence of multicultural values and the sharing of civilized achievements, which can challenge the limits of human beings and achieve unity, commonality and integration. The essence of sports art is an expression of sports spirit, and every artistic creation is also an opportunity for cultural exchange.
Taking the torch as an example, according to the different venues, it presents different artistic features and carries the unique cultural characteristics of the region. People from different parts of the world communicate with each other and the world becomes rich and colorful. (End)
Interviewee profile:
Xu Liaoyuan, an artist and designer, is the curator of Chengdu Xu Liaoyuan Museum of Modern Design and Art, the dean of the School of Art and Design of Geely University, the honorary dean of China ASEAN Art College, and the torch designer of the 31st Summer Universiade. He dabbled in sculpture, painting, calligraphy, pottery, design and many other artistic categories, and founded the "sensualism" art school, whose theoretical research results "liquor aesthetics" and "new cultural relics’ future view" have a wide influence.