Illustrator Lu Xun

Author: Wang Xirong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: Lu Xun's self-description of sending the Peking University emblem to Mr. Cai Yuanpei – "Lu Xun's Diary" (August 7, 1917)
Related Links: Chang Hui: At that time, Mr. Cai Yuanpei, the principal of Beijing Fire School, greatly admired Lu Xun's talent in fine arts. For example, the student emblem and flag of Peking University were both designed by Lu Xun. – "Reminiscences of Lu Xun"
Editor's Note: Starting from December 1916, Cai Yuanpei took office as the president of Peking University. The following year, he invited Lu Xun to design the university emblem. Lu Xun completed the design and sent the emblem to Cai Yuanpei on August 7, which was then adopted. It was later abandoned for a long time and was not used again until the 1980s. The current Peking University emblem is based on this original design. >> This Peking University emblem designed by Lu Xun features the characters "Bei Da" in seal script forming a circle, making it suitable for circular badges. What's clever is that the character "Da" at the bottom resembles a person, while the character "Bei" above resembles two people, thus creating the imagery of "three people becoming a crowd." It also resembles a single person carrying two others, evoking the idea of "Peking University people bearing great responsibilities." In terms of artistic treatment, this emblem has a simple yet grand composition, with smooth and well-structured lines, conveying rich meaning. Using the text of the design subject to form the emblem is a common technique in logo design, but an accomplished designer uses the text to create a pattern that reflects the emblem's essence. Lu Xun's design of this emblem achieved this level of excellence. P27