Development Clues Of Modern Chinese Industrial Design

Nowadays,the academia has paid certain attention to the development history of modern Chinese design,initiated a positive discussion on the cognition and research method of design history,and brought forth a number of valuable academic papers and monographs.But it can be seen from the quantity and quality of the related literatures and the profoundness of the monographic studies searched out at home that the academia hasn’t done sufficient research into the industrial product-based modern design yet.In particular,there are fewer discussions on industrial design in the research works on the history of modern design,not to mention the researches on the development history of modern Chinese industrial design.In a word,a systematic discussion hasn’t been formed yet in the academic circles.Modern Chinese industry came into being under the influence of the western countries,and its development underwent a constant deepening and increasing process from the coast to inland.Modern Chinese industry wasn’t an active adjustment made in accordance with the requirements of China’s own technological change or industrial development,but a passive response of the traditional natural economy to the invasion of the western advanced production mode.Modern Chinese industrial design developed synchronously with the modem industry.The “subjectivity” and “jumping characteristic” behind the “dependent” development of Modern Chinese industry had a deep impact on the development of industrial design.Overall,the development of modern Chinese industrial design is characterized by unbalance,independency and passivity.According to the development characteristics of the modern industry and economy,the development of modern Chinese industrial design can be divided into four stages: emergence,development,boom and stagnation.Technology,commerce and humanity are exactly three key factors in design ontology that need consideration.This paper summarizes three clues for the development of modern Chinese industrial design: technological progress,commercial right and humanistic enlightenment.This can be understood as a survey of the development of modern Chinese industrial design from three perspectives.There wasn’t a parallel or peer-to-peer relation but a progressive relationship between the three development clues of modern industrial design: technological progress had a significant effect on the development of industrial design in the early days,and its key function ran through the whole development process of modern industrial design;commercial right didn’t draw extensive attention until industrial design developed to a certain level,which effectively promoted the development and prosperity of industrial design;as a correctional force,humanistic thinking became a reflection on industrial design,which promoted the gradual maturity of industrial design.Technology was a basis for the emergence and development of industrial design.In the early development process of China’s industrialization,both national policy and corporate behavior were aimed to achieving technological progress.During this period,there was no entirely independent phenomenon of design or designing profession.In modem times,China,a backward country,always treated technology as the core of industrial development,aimed at narrowing its gap with the advanced countries,so for it,technological development was the key.This paper defines technological progress as a “main clue”.The discussion of this clue is focused more on the events and problems in the field of industrial design practice,and investigates the phenomenon of industrial design from a micro perspective.Technology is a basis for product development and innovation,industrial design behavior takes “efficacy” a logic line under technological progress,and design is usually aimed at meeting the needs of a country or society for survival.This paper extensively investigated national strategic industries and civilian industries according to the development of industrial design from a perspective of technological progress.The development of industrial design driven by technological progress includes product standardization,creative talent cultivation and other relevant key issues.Commerce is an external condition essential for the development and prosperity of industrial design.In modern China,commerce develops together with technological progress as an enlightenment thought.China didn’t have many commercial thoughts about technological introduction and enterprise operation in the early development stage of national strategic industries,so the relevant enterprises lacked momentum for sustainable development and innovation.This situation wasn’t changed much until after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895.Owing to the low influence of modern commerce on industrial design,this paper just defines commercial right as an “auxiliary line”,but this definition does not deny the importance of modern commerce.From a perspective of commercial right,industrial design behavior falls into three levels: nation,enterprise and related intermediate organization.The correlative discussions from a perspective of commercial right are focused more on the strategy problems existing in the development of industrial design,which investigate the development of industrial design from a mesoscopic perspective.Commercial competition was a stimulating factor for the development and prosperity of industrial design,and from this logical view of point,China aimed to assert rights,while the enterprises aimed to pursue benefits.This paper discusses the effect of commercial right on modern industrial design at the level of government,enterprise and related intermediate organization.The government held World Expo and launched domestic product movement for the purpose of promoting the development of the domestic industrial products;as the national strategic industrial enterprises were reformed and reorganized under the idea of commercial right and the foreign enterprises in China began to emphasize product development and marketing tactics,private enterprises felt stressed and therefore started to make use of national emotion for product brand building and visual promotion;guild,trade association and other intermediate groups concerned also called for boycotts of foreign goods and made positive efforts to promote the development of the domestic products.Industrial design couldn’t have developed without the support of national policy.After the modern times began,the government promulgated a number of laws to encourage product design innovation and standardize the brand trademark system.Ideological enlightenment evolved synchronously with the development of industrial design in modern China.Humanistic Ideas had a certain influence on industrial design practice.After being deeply involved in the populace’ production and living,industrial products(foreign goods)changed their lifestyle,broadened their vision and enlightened their mind.As a result,the development of modern Chinese industrial design brought a negative effect to ideological enlightenment.Humanistic thinking was a reflection on the overall development of industrial design,and a macroscopic thought about industrial design(products)in the society.It was also a force that drove industrial design to self-repair and maturity since it contained multi-level expectations for industrial design.Humanistic thinking had a number of representations in modern industrial design practice: modern industrial products’ tendency of pragmatism under rational ideological enlightenment;the change of product style under the people’s new aesthetic standards;the fusion of Chinese and Western product styles under cultural collision.The positive promoting effect of industrial design development on modern humanistic enlightenment: industrial product innovation promoted the formation of rational thinking;the extensive use of foreign implements promoted the formation of a modern lifestyle;urban public transport and other relevant articles designed for the masses promoted the awareness of democracyon a social scale;the popularization and utilization of bike and sewing machine effectively promoted social equity.From product(technology)introduction and imitation to fusion and innovation,the development of modern Chinese industrial design stepped onto a special path.A few factors,such as low operational efficiency and sustainability of product and technology introduction in early modern China,and lack of “secondary innovation” impetus in the modern social mechanism,greatly reduced the development of industrial design in spite of technological progress.As the deep development of commercial right,design practice turned its attention from “commerce” to “investigation”,and design strategy gradually broke away from government policy support to follow business organization and management.All this reflects some progress in industrial design.Due to the pursuit of “effectiveness”,it was necessary for technological progress and commercial right to combine each other in the development of industrial design;owing to the special national conditions of modern China,national emotion actively promoted the economic power action of industrial design;driven by commercial right at that time,the avant-garde artistic and aesthetic ideology(form)spread widely in design.Technology,commerce and humanity are considered as independent clues for the initial development of industrial design for clarifying the inherent logic of the development of industrial design in modern China as well as the root of the problems.Their reference value to the development of contemporary industrial design is an understood thing.Currently industrial design is regarded as an important medium between technology,commerce and humanity(aesthetics),and a force that drives human beings to a poetic life.At that time,technology,commerce and humanity(logic)may step toward unification.