The translated script of an interview on Olympic
Mascots designer Han Meilin. (Beijing Times, November 3, 2005)
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| Han
Meilin and the Friendlies. [Xinhua] |
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Reporter:
How did you come out with the image of the friendlies
Han: The friendlies were based on the prototypes given to me by Mr. Wu
Guanying from the Tsinghua University Fine Arts Institute. On February 2 on
China's lunar calendar (March 11, 2005), after spending a fruitless night on
them, I couldn't go on with my work. So I took a cold-water shower. While I was
bathing, the idea flashed across my head - why not let these creatures wear
headgears with animal characteristics.
Reporter: The athleticism is a core factor to Olympic mascots design. How did
you handle this?
Han: After deciding on the primary look of the friendlies, we went through a
great amount sports materials, text and graphic, to draft the firendlies
practicing different sports. Panda practices weightlifting; Tibetan antelope
running; fish swimming …etc. But when all the drafts were combined first, they
looked a bit clumsy than we thought. It was from the images of Tibetan antelope
that we finally drew inspirations to tackle this problem.
The first draft Han Meilin drew for the
Friendlies.
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Reporter: How many changes did you make along the process?
Han: We all together have more than 4000 manuscripts inside the process and
more than 60 changes were made to the prototypes.
Reporter: Styles may differ within a designing team. Were there any disputes?
Han: Sure. You may like a color others don't like; you may favor a image
others don't favor. We used to think about the proposal of rattle-drum, but when
a drum was added legs, it turned out somewhat unacceptable to me. So we dropped
it.
Reporter: You were severely sick during the period?
Han: Yes, two times of
heart-attack, but I was back after receiving emergent surgeries.
Reporter: How much did the Olympics organization committee pay for your
work?
Han: I don't want any payment, besides the copyright, but the committee
rewarded me one yuan.
Other candidates for 2008 Olympics
mascots |
Reporter: Do you have regrets over the friendlies?
Han: Yes. The biggest
regret that held me now is that the friendlies failed to embody the great art of
Chinese calligraphy. We tried for thousands of times, but the results came out
unsatisfactory.
Reporter: Among the five, which is your favorite?
Han: All these five were
from my hands. I am like their father. There's no preference inside me. But
picking up the color for Nini (swallow) tortured my team really, so the color
side of Nini is a bit unsatisfactory to us.
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