鲍志成
2017年11月24日,中国共产党与世界政党高层对话会海报《共饮一泓水》和《美美与共、和而不同》正式发布。一石激起千层浪,顿时刷爆微信朋友圈:“高颜值”“意蕴深远”……网友对海报赞不绝口,好评如潮。小小一杯茶,为全球首次政党间高层对话营造出一种清新脱俗的格调和开放、包容、和谐的氛围。
两幅茶主题海报蕴含着深刻文化内涵,欣赏之余让人遐想联翩。中联部发布的海报创意设计理念说,两张海报以“茶”为主要创意元素,巧借中国以茶会友、品茶论道的文化传统。在海报《共饮一泓水》中,一盏青花瓷茶杯中盛着清茶,杯内茶水清澈,呈现出世界地图的映象。青花瓷茶桌上,以茶杯为圆心扩散出圈圈涟漪,寓意“构建人类命运共同体,共同建设美好世界”的主张影响深远。在海报《美美与共、和而不同》中,中式茶杯、阿拉伯式茶杯和西式咖啡杯象征与会政党的广泛代表性。三杯茶色泽清丽,水面呈现类似太极阴阳图形的明暗区隔,寓指中国共产党构建人类命运共同体的主张与中国“和而不同”、“和谐相生”、“美美与共”等传统哲学观一脉相承的联系。
客来奉茶,是中华民族的传统礼俗。每当有朋自远方来,奉上一杯新沏的热气腾腾、清香馥郁的好茶,是中国人自古以来就有的待客之道。在茶香袅袅、把盏品茗中,宾主之间寒暄问候,畅叙情谊、叙旧话新,在轻松和谐的对话交流氛围中,增进了解,加深感情。这次中国共产党与世界政党首次对话,有来自120多个国家的300多个政党和政治组织的600多位中外人士在北京共襄盛会,可谓高朋满座,群英荟萃,济济一堂,其乐融融。大家都为了一个共同的崇高目标——构建人类命运共同体、携手共建美好新世界聚集到一起,在品茶论道中交流治国理政之道,探求人类和平发展之路。在这样高大上的历史性场景中,以茶为元素设计会议海报,寄寓了客来奉茶、品茶论道的礼俗文化传统,富有仪式感和场景美双重视觉传达效果,堪称创意设计运用传统元素的经典案例。
茶源自中国,茶和茶文化是华夏先民的众多原创发明之一,也是中华民族对人类做出的伟大贡献。十八大以来,习近平高度重视传统文化的传承发展,多次在国事外交中开展“茶叙外交”,从G20杭州峰会期间与时任美国总统奥巴马的“西湖茶话”,到与越共中央总书记阮富仲在人民大会堂澳门厅品茶,再到特朗普总统访华第一站“故宫茶叙”,奉茶待客,茶话国事,以茶为礼,彰显中国特色,得到中外各界高度好评。在重大双边、多边会谈或国际会议场合,他多次巧用茶事讲述“中国故事”,以茶为媒,借古喻今,在中外人士中留下了深刻印象。一杯清茶,从百姓日常的待客礼俗到国家外交的至高礼节,实现了从传统民俗到现代国礼的传承发展,完成了中华文化到世界文化的华丽转型。一杯清茶,雅俗共赏,一身清气,满堂和美,简约而庄重,文明而尊贵,恰似对“不要人夸颜色好,只留清气满乾坤”梅花品格的生动写照。“十九大”以后的首场重大主场外交,以茶为元素首次设计“预热”海报,亲切自然、恰到好处地诠释了会议主题,营造了中国为主场的文化特色和民族气派。
海报《共饮一泓水》中盛着清澈茶汤的青花瓷茶杯令人瞩目。众所周知,中国是瓷器发明国,唐宋以后中国瓷器大量从海上丝绸之路输出到亚非欧各国,迄今在海丝沿线各地有大量中国瓷器出土(水)或被珍藏,成为历史上中外文化交流的实物见证。烧造瓷器被赞誉为土与火的艺术,作为中国宝贵的文化艺术形态之一,它被世界上许多国家和民族所珍视和喜爱,以致用china(瓷器)来称呼中国,成为中国一个响当当的文化品牌和文化符号。熟悉瓷器历史的人都知道,元代成熟并盛产的青花瓷,是用产自波斯卡山夸姆萨地方(今伊拉克境内)的氧化钴矿为颜料,在瓷胎表面绘画卷草、折枝、团花等纹饰,施加青釉在高温下烧成后呈白底青花美丽图案的瓷器。别具一格的装饰效果和艺术风格,成为中国瓷器艺术的一朵奇葩,深受中外各族人民喜爱。因此,青花瓷是丝绸之路中外文化交流的结晶,在它独特的艺术风格和文化意涵里,蕴藏着不同民族、不同信仰、不同文化交互融合、互为一体的深刻内涵,彰显着习近平提出的和平合作、开放包容、互学互鉴、互利共赢的“丝路精神”。用青花瓷茶盏为主体造型,来象征或喻指“构建人类命运共同体、共同建设美好世界”的会议主题,真是再好不过了。
海报《共饮一泓水》在区区一盏茶汤的空间里呈现世界地图的映象,还让人联想到中国茶文化“壶里乾坤大、杯中日月长”的说法。一壶茶,就是一个世界;一杯茶,就是一个人生。一壶虽小,里面却别有洞天,一杯虽微,杯中可映日月,星空灿烂。在中国文化的视野里,具象的茶壶、茶杯具有了天地、日月乃至宇宙、天道的意蕴。因此,在一盏茶里呈现世界地图的映象,既符合中國茶文化的传统理念,也赋予了会议主题的当下意义,更突出了东道主胸怀世界、勇于担当的天下情怀和时代使命。
在海报《美美与共、和而不同》中,中式茶杯、阿拉伯式茶杯和西式咖啡杯三套一组,象征着拥有不同国别背景、不同文化传统和不同意识形态的政党,在中国共产党的倡议下坐在一起品茶论道、坦诚交流。
和平发展是时代发展大势。“世界潮流,浩浩荡荡,顺之则昌,逆之则亡。”中国共产党邀请世界各国政党领导人汇聚一堂,以茶问道,共谋大计,携手各国人民构建更加美好的新世界,这不仅完全符合世界各国人民的良好意愿,也在根本上代表着全人类的共同利益。事实证明,中国的“一带一路”倡议和积极推进的“互联互通”“六大廊道”“亚投行”“丝路基金”等等,已经获得越来越多的国家的赞同和参与,我们的朋友圈正在不断扩大,“中国智慧”、“中国方案”的影响力与日俱增。海报以青花瓷茶杯为圆心,扩散出一圈圈涟漪,寓意“构建人类命运共同体、共同建设美好世界”的主张影响深远,必将吸引越来越多的认同者、支持者、同行者。endprint
中國共产党与世界政党高层对话会的主题,正是要探讨“构建人类命运共同体、共同建设美好世界”伟大征程中的“政党责任”。以三套象征着世界饮茶文化版图具有代表性的茶具,以及茶汤里通过明暗色调处理映现出的“太极图”,隐喻阴阳平衡、世界和谐、和而不同、美美与共的中国传统哲学思想和人类社会发展愿景,不仅具有生动易懂的艺术形式创新,更有寓意深刻的文化传播价值。这次茶元素海报设计是我国重大主场外交活动运用茶文化讲好“中国故事”、表达“中国理念”、传播中华文化的成功探索,也为在推进“一带一路”中实践“茶和天下”的美好愿望提供了经典案例。
Dialogue over a Cup of Tea
By Bao Zhicheng
On November 24, 2017, two posters were released for the Communist Party of China (CPC) in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting to be held in Beijing from November 30 to December 3, 2017. Cultural celebrities and tea professionals across the country responded warmly to the messages of the posters and the way they were delivered.
The two posters were titled “A Community with a Shared Future”.
The posters used “tea” as the main creative element, skillfully applying the Chinese cultural tradition of drinking tea with friends, which vividly reflected the theme of this dialogue that building a community with a shared future for mankind and building a beautiful world is the responsibility of world political parties.
One of the posters presented a cup of tea on a tea table. A map of the world is projected inside the cup as if the world were made of tealeaves. In another poster, a Chinese teacup, an Arabian teacup, and a western coffee cup stand side by side, all with tea water inside in the shape of the Ying Yang pattern.
Traditionally, Chinese welcome guests with a cup of tea. The tradition goes back to thousands of years ago. Over a cup of tea, the host and the guest can catch up with each other, do some small talks, and exchange serious ideas, and deepen friendship and understanding. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, President Xi Jinping has entertained foreign state leaders with a cup of tea. On key bilateral and multilateral occasions, he has told stories about China over a cup of tea. So it was all appropriate to give a tea treat to the guests from all over the world on the first international occasion after the conclusion of the 19th National Congress of the CPC.
The CPC dialogue with the world political leaders was unprecedented. Over 600 leaders of 300 plus political parties and organizations from 120 countries met in Beijing to build up a community with a shared future for mankind and build a beautiful world.
Some cultural critics have praised the posters for the ingenuous use of symbolisms. The posters served as a good example of relating China Story, and expressing Chinese concepts, and promoting Chinese culture to the world.endprint
The blue-white porcelain in the posters is eye-catching. It is well known that China exported chinaware to the outside world in ancient times. The making of blue-white porcelain matured in the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368). The porcelain produced in China during this period was meant mainly for consumers in western and central Asian countries and regions. The dye stuff came from Persia and the blue patterns such as curled grass, incomplete twigs and balled flowers on the white porcelain were of the artistic tradition in that part of the world. It can be said that the blue-white porcelain resulted from cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the world. The porcelain was indeed a very appropriate symbol used for this high-level meeting of the world political leaders in Beijing.
The three teacups in one poster also symbolized three representative tea cultures in the world. The Taiji Pattern in the tea cups implies to the balance of Ying and Yang, the harmony of countries, harmony over disagreement for a shared future. These symbols are easy to understand and spread the useful concepts culturally. Cultural celebrities say that the posters were a good example of putting Chinese culture to good practice and that the posters will serve as an iconic case study for promoting the Belt & Road initiative in a cultural way.endprint