Souvenir competition winners worth remembering
Thirty-four souvenirs blending traditional Chinese culture, haipai (Shanghai-style) flavor and innovative designs were recognized in the city's annual tourism souvenir design competition, local cultural and tourism authorities announced on Saturday.
They were selected from more than 1,100 entries in this year's competition launched by the Shanghai Administration of Culture and Tourism in July as part of the 2020 Shanghai Tourism Festival.
The winning works include a mecha of Monkey King, the mythical Chinese hero, a set of eight Smurfs, cultural and innovative products such as refrigerator magnet and jigsaw puzzle, and a group of four facial masks featuring classic and animated dragon-and-phoenix patterns for both children and adults.
They display the heroic spirit and bravery of Monkey King and remind those born in the 1970s and 80s of their happy childhood, the administration said.
A tea set in the shape of Monkey King and a collection of men's skincare products with inspiration drawn from Calabash Brothers, famous Chinese animation characters from the Shanghai Animation Film Studio, are also among the winning entries.
A range of cultural and innovative products by the operator of the Zhujiajiao watertown merges Jiangnan (regions south of Yangtze River) culture and ancient town culture into the package design of mineral water.
The bottle design of sweet-scented osmanthus beer, a gift from the classic Kezhi Garden inside the watertown, uses woodblock print techniques to highlight sweet-scented osmanthus trees in the garden.
A range of creative products such as fan, umbrella, enamel bookmark and bag by Jiading Museum highlight an animated lion figure, which is created based on the stone lions standing at the gate of the Jiading Confucius Temple built in 1219.
Some works include intangible cultural heritage elements such as Jinshan farmer painting and Luojing cross-stitch. Local time-honored restaurants also brought traditional delicacies such as pork-filled mooncake to the competition.
The competition, in its 15th year, sought short videos on social media platform Douyin (known overseas as TikTok) for the first time. An account known as "Shanghai Gift" was launched on the platform for the event.
Designers entering the final round visited animation companies, cultural venues and tourist attractions to experience how a "Shanghai gift" is created.
Works with quality design will be recommended to companies to help them hit the market, said Shen Chao, an official with the administration.
Some winning entries in previous competitions have already hit shelves at designated Shanghai souvenir franchise stores and shops at tourist attractions, he said.
Agreements on the development and mass production of some new winning entries were signed between companies and designers during the awards ceremony on Saturday.