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Dunhuang Silk Scarf Design
Where Traditional Culture Meets Innovative Design — Opening a New Digital Era of the Silk Road
Client
Design Objectives
Product Innovation
Project Value
Innovation Insights
Project Background
Coinciding with the first anniversary of the “Digital Silk Road,” Tencent Cultural & Creative collaborated with the Dunhuang Academy, together with the LKK-LKK Cultural & Creative Design Team and the Yitang Silk brand, to develop two Dunhuang-inspired cultural and creative products—custom incubation silk scarves. This project was created as a tribute to the Year of Jihai, aiming to jointly preserve and promote traditional Chinese culture.
User Requirements
To better convey the essence of Dunhuang culture, the LKK-LKK design team invested 122 days in in-depth research and study of the Mogao Caves murals. Drawing inspiration from the most recognizable icon of Mogao Grottoes—the Nine-Colored Deer—the team used it as the core design origin. As a result, two culturally rich Dunhuang-themed creative products were developed, embodying the spirit and aesthetics of the Dunhuang heritage.
Design Strategy
Product Strategy
To better engage younger audiences and incorporate their creativity and ideas, the Dunhuang cultural and creative silk scarf series has introduced a DIY design edition. Through a digital platform, young users can create and customize their own cultural and creative product—designing a truly personalized silk scarf.
Design Inspiration
The “Digital Silk Deer” design draws inspiration from the Nine-Colored Deer imagery found in the Jataka Tales of the Deer King mural in Cave 257 of the Northern Wei period at the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, as well as the green-and-blue landscape elements located in the upper right corner of the Sutra of the Uṣṇīṣa Vijaya Dharani Transformation mural on the south wall of Cave 217 from the prosperous Tang Dynasty.
💡 Solution
- In the silk scarf design, the Nine-Colored Deer breaks away from the original horizontal scroll composition of the mural, appearing instead to pause, glance around, and gallop through the mountains. Based on the mural imagery, LKK-LKK designers extended the deer’s form into multiple dynamic poses. Against the backdrop of green-and-blue landscape imagery symbolizing the Silk Road, the transcendent spirit of the Nine-Colored Deer and the scenery complement and echo each other.
- The Apsaras (Flying Apsaras) are arranged in a structured, continuously repeating pattern, moving in the same direction as the Nine-Colored Deer located at the lower left corner. In this scarf design, the deer—like in the original mural—stands upright with dignity and righteousness. It symbolizes the sacred deer and the Apsaras jointly undertaking the mission of exploring and expanding the “Digital Silk Road.”
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