Japanese Packaging Design Features and Causes

[China Packaging Network News] 1. "First Impressions" of Japanese Market Packaging Design

1. "Yang", "and" two types of packaging show style

This trip passes through Tokyo, Fujinomiya, Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, Nagoya, and the Aichi World Expo. It's all over the place, coming and going in a hurry, passing through street shops, souvenir shops, specialty stores, supermarkets, department stores, and large shopping malls. . The first impression is that Japan is a society where there is more than enough demand and there is a wide range of goods. From the point of view of packaging design, we can roughly classify its style into two major categories. One is the modern "foreign" style, and the other is the traditional "and" style; although it is also possible to distinguish the comprehensive form, but " And "," two types of foreign or major types. Just like the girls on the streets of Japan, there are images that are dyed with colorful hair, dressed in exaggerated and open fashion clothes, and dressed in traditional kimonos and clogs, stepped on small steps and elegantly reserved. These two styles echo each other, attract people's attention, and make people feel that traditional and modern, simple and stylish coexist in harmony.

"Ocean" packaging highlights the consumption mentality of mainstream people in today's urban life in Japan - chasing fashion, openness and worship; and "and" packaging reflects the attachment of Japanese people to their traditional cultural spirit.

Japan's "He" packaging is why the author pays attention to it. First of all, because the designer carries forward the characteristics of the national style, he also strives to make the work more contemporary, thus creating a new fashion style; secondly because of its eastern The spirit and Chinese traditional culture are inextricably linked. Today's Japan has joined the spirit of traditional Japanese culture on the basis of traditional Chinese culture. Based on this, it has sought out the Japanese atmosphere and the context of modern fashion, and has gone out of praise with the new Japanese packaging style. the way.

2. Traditional new materials, exquisite craftsmanship and careful design

Japan's product packaging reveals a profound sense of quality. From the surface of the packaging: not only the depth of the graphics creation and the use of colors, but also the designer's attention to excellence in material selection and craftsmanship. The graphics and colors mainly revolve around the traditional aesthetic and national culture. The choice of materials is based on nature. Through modern technology, it becomes practical and beautiful, and it has a distinctive packaging image with Japanese characteristics. It fully shows that it is known for its rigorous work. Japanese talent in packaging art.

This intelligence is also expressed in the following aspects: First, the packaging-related materials industry, processing technology, and its systems are well-developed, such as the modern fashion of traditional handicrafts such as paper, lacquer, wood, etc.; Related research on design and methods, in-depth research on traditional handicrafts, and business intelligence work have been more solid. All these provide a good foundation for design creation. Therefore, it is difficult to find things that are crude in the Japanese store, from the smallest toothpicks to daily necessities; from single individual products to serialized product combinations; from machine production to hand-made, pieces are crafted. ,fascinating.

3. The concept of environmental protection is reflected everywhere in packaging design and production

Japan is an island nation with many people on the ground. The internal resources crisis has created a strong sense of environmental protection. This sense of environmental protection is the result of the awareness of the government and its related organizations, education, and public awareness. It is reflected in all aspects of the daily life of the Japanese people. Similarly, in packaging design, designers consciously consider environmental protection factors and become their normal mode of thinking. In the design practice, material selection and development are based on materials that are environmentally friendly and easy to recycle.

Second, interpret the design of the background and causes

1. The in-depth study of morphology, traditional graphics, and perceptual engineering in Japanese design education is the key. By observing the phenomenon, we can trace the background of this design creation and realization. Japanese scholars have conducted in-depth research on modern design basic education and gradually formed their own unique theories and methods. They had done in-depth research and interpretation of western constructivist ideology and color science. They built the so-called “three major components” education system with Japanese unique subdivision concepts; at the same time, they did not give up the traditional patterns of the East. Research and interpretation of studies, such as traditional patterning and processing techniques (such as grass dyeing, tie-dyeing, embroidery, hand-painting, etc.) with the axis of “kimono” clothing as the core, this research method that combines traditional pattern and morphology constitution It is bound to present a pattern of mutual reference and common development.

In addition, with the increasingly fierce market competition, consumer-oriented product development models have become mainstream. Therefore, the study of the so-called "sensible engineering" theoretical system has become increasingly mature in Japan. It is essentially a kind of concept and method of using engineering technology to explore the different "feeling values" and relations between "human" senses and "objects". In the field of product design, it quantitatively expresses people's sensibility of "material" and associates them with product features to design products that meet people's expectations.

2. The multicultural environment and self-improvement of national consciousness have given birth to the formation of "Japanese flavor" in the design of Japan. It is not difficult to feel the multiculturalism rooted in this land and water, there is a complete copy of the European and American things, there is a Zen in ancient China. "Conceiving" means that there is also pure Japanese simplicity and gorgeousness, and more recently "Japanese fashion." However, what attracts the author's attention is still something that has "Japanese flavor." The formation of these "Japanese tastes" is the most important one. The most important thing is the Japanese nation's strong sense of home ownership and their unique collective ideas - this kind of consciousness can give birth to a common spirit and similar taste.

Driven by the common aesthetic spirit of "Japanese Flavor," under the social conditions of the original sense of intensification caused by the competition, and in an atmosphere of respect for the designer's originality, Japanese designers intentionally play their "re-creation" on the traditional platform. Ability. For example, the redevelopment and reprocessing of traditional materials have brought new ideas. The use of new fashion means to reprint those delicate patterns on paper in large quantities, and then use this type of paper for future designs, so that "Japanese taste" has always maintained vitality and change.

This evolving "Japanese flavor" has apparent visual characteristics in Japanese packaging design. Many languages ​​in traditional design are reflected in modern packaging. In terms of patterns, the main theme is abstraction. Themes are plant patterns (Mei, Sakura, rattan, chrysanthemum), animal motifs (dragon, phoenix, fish, birds), utensils patterns (disc, fan, fan, tea prop), and hemp Leaves, meshes and tortoiseshells as well as traditional family emblems and geometric motifs dominate. In addition, the use of many "knot" elements in kimonos and ancient women's headdresses has been well applied in the packaging, and new interpretations and variations have been made. And around the application of "Japanese traditional colors", a series of color vocabularies with Japanese characteristics have been produced from the fields of traditional paintings, patterns, clothing, and food, and colors with Japanese characteristics have been formed on the packaging.

Of course, a relatively perfect system of advertising and marketing, a strong basic industry, and the development of a relatively healthy traditional handicraft system are also guarantees for the realization of design concepts. This provides a good environment for the realization of "Japanese flavor" - the extension and creation of traditional contexts.

Third, the case of a few small product packaging design analysis

Case I: Fruit

Fruit, the traditional sweet dessert of Japan, is often used as a "companion" for tea ceremony. Generally made of rice flour, divided into two kinds of hard and soft, hard biscuits like biscuits and rice cakes, soft and similar to China's rice cake group. For a big country like China, this unpalatable snack can hardly be mentioned. However, it is the most common snack that has been carefully designed and packaged by designers. It has played a very important role in the daily ceremonial life in Japan and has become a good gift.

First of all, the design and production of fruit forms and colors are varied. Secondly, after being packaged, it is presented in different grades on the market, with prices ranging from a few thousand yen to tens of thousands of yen. Popular packaging is generally three layers. The outermost layer is wrapping paper, with Japanese comics, traditional motifs or texts as the main graphics, and some direct Japanese paper. The second floor is a paper box with a plastic compartment in which the fruit is neatly arranged and there is a separate plastic package. There are four or more layers for precious gift items. In addition to the more refined design of outer paper and boxes, the individually packaged layers are also more thought-provoking. Wrapping paper, handmade into various shapes, is like a meticulous work of art. This is an ordinary dessert and is shaped as a precious gift.

Case II: pickles

The same packaging features are represented in another humble food - pickles. Japanese designers did a lot of work on the packaging of pickles. In order to convey the concept of nature and environmental protection, pickles are packed with natural materials or simulations (leaves, bamboo leaves) in a large number of packages; sometimes they are shaped like original materials, like whole radishes, whole cabbages, and strive to express A sense of return to the natural ecology. It is through a variety of thoughtful designs that the added value of the product is enhanced.

Case 3: Lunch

Lunch is Japan's daily fast food, which is generally sold in supermarkets and small shops. For different classes in office workers, their product quality and packaging are different. The economical packaging is ordinary cartons and wood-like cartons, while the advanced ones are wooden or plastic boxes of imitation lacquerware. This kind of design comes from traditional Japanese food and drink, all of which are made of wood and ceramic utensils and are put in lacquer boxes. Nowadays, urban commuters are pursuing this kind of eating habits. Designers use this method. The only difference is that they use easily recycled paper materials such as recycled paper and recycled wood to make people enjoy traditional food. Beauty can save costs.

Such cases are numerous. Due to space limitations, only these three cases are cited. When the author looked through the considerable number of material photographs taken during his trip to Japan, he could not help thinking that on the international platform, where would China's product development and packaging design, production, and marketing go? How is the spirit of modern China presented? These propositions are of particular concern to us.