On the design communication of cultural image

Abstract

In this era, people are no longer satisfied with standardized products. Designers need to implement unique product semantics to attract customers to buy the products. According to this reason, designers are developing a new design approach that puts cultural elements into their products so that they can make people reappreciate their own culture and history. The Olympics is a global event which involves various sport competitions. Before the Beijing Olympic Games, many host nations used to promote their culture through selling a variety of merchandise. It is the first time for the Olympic Games to take place in China which means that it is obviously the right timing to see cultural symbols of China in the merchandises created by the Chinese design team. These designs had introduced Chinese imageries to the whole world. As generally known, traditional culture of Taiwan actually took root from China. Taiwan owns the same ancient history and materials like China. This study explores the cultural identity and analyses the cultural design elements of China. The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games is taken as case study in this research, because it helps people think how to create new value from their own culture. Furthermore, this paper proposes some suggestions on how to create design which represents the image of Taiwan.