Audi 2007 Annual Report Download - page 106

104 DESIGN&CREATIVITY
The Medal Maker
He has immortalized the Olympic spirit in jade: Top Chinese designer
Xiao Yong won the competition to design the medals for the 2008
Summer Olympics.
COPY Ruth Kirchner PHOTOGRAPHY Justin Jin
or a top designer, he looks rather unassuming, but
Xiao Yong, 38, actually is China’s hottest new creative
talent. His studio, an old beverage factory in the
artists’ quarter Jiu Chang, is somewhat hard to spot.
No plaque adorns the heavy iron door in the grey brick
building. “Here is where I find peace,” laughs Xiao Yong.
His two dogs, Dang Dang and Ding Ding, are lounging lazily
in the fall sun.
The fresh-faced designer is every bit as unpretentious as
his simple yet effective creations: Two simple red chevrons
forming the logo for the Beijing Urban Planning Museum,
for example, or a simple line drawing for a telecommunica-
tions company. Over the past 15 years, Xiao has styled
around 250 brands and company logos, not forgetting posters
for businesses and a large number of events. Galleries and
museums are already collecting his work, and he has received
over 40 international design awards.
But Xiao Yong is yet to make his greatest entrance. When the
athletes step onto the podium at the 2008 Beijing Olympics to
collect their medals, in a certain sense Xiao Yong will be there
with them. He is the man behind the medal design. “That’s
just one of my many projects,” he shrugs modestly.
On the front of the medal, Xiao has followed the directions of
the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to the letter. It
shows Nike, the winged goddess of victory, and a sports arena
in Athens, birthplace of the Games. But on the back, Xiao has
added a very special touch to the metal disc, with a simple
F
Master of
understatement:
Designer Xiao Yong
in his studio in Jiu
Chang, the artists’
quarter of Beijing.