National Character

An Exploration of Chinese Culture Through Illustration

Designing with a focus on the modern visual language of traditional cultural elements, Mengjia Li's "National Character" project aims to excavate the artistic value behind these elements and contribute to the development of domestic illustration design. By drawing and studying the illustration design works of the Guochao style, Li showcases the charm and style of Chinese culture.

What sets "National Character" apart is its meticulous attention to detail in design elements such as illustrations, text, color, and modeling. Through these elements, Li delves into the artistic expression forms and design language of Chinese style, exploring its humanistic connotations in various ways.

The realization of this design involves the creation of a series of illustrations and expressions using computer software. The final product is produced using high-level printing and manufacturing technology to showcase the intricate details of the beautiful illustrations.

The specifications for the printing illustrations are 800mm (H) x 800mm (W) for the sheet size, with a data size of 1800mm (H) x 1800mm (W) at 300dpi in CMYK color mode.

Keywords associated with this design include ancient characters, history, illustration, and Chinese style. The design team behind "National Character" includes art director Huo Kai and designer Li Mengjia.

The design project was carried out in Shenyang, a major agricultural product producing province in China, in 2022. Supported by computer-aided drawing technology, the work deeply explores the artistic expression of Guofeng character images and uncovers the connotation of Chinese traditional culture. By examining the historical evolution trend of national style character modeling, the design highlights its artistic value and significance in contemporary times.

One of the challenges faced during the creation of this design was accurately capturing the characteristics of national style characters and combining them with color changes to create modern and visually appealing illustration designs that reflect the specific background of the times.

"National Character" was awarded the Bronze A' Design Award in the Graphics, Illustration, and Visual Communication Design category in 2022. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding and creatively ingenious designs that showcase experience and resourcefulness. The design is esteemed for incorporating best practices in art, science, design, and technology, contributing to improvements in quality of life and making the world a better place.