QQ 20th Anniversary Exhibition | Plan and Design Execution
01 Overview
The 20th anniversary of QQ is a legend of the evergreen Internet products, which witnessed the growth of the well-known Penguin IP. It represents the spirit of tenacity and forging ahead in Tencent. Though it has been for 20 years, we still follow the initial mind and keep the passion to enhance the quality of life through Internet services. To imply the arrival of a new milestone, we designed the Space QQ who is exploring the field of science and technology as the brand concept of this anniversary. Just like the brave astronauts exploring the unknown universe, QQ keeps changing and growing with the initial willing, and provides users with more technological and innovative services. Moreover, it also implies the vision of Tencent to constantly explore the future and realize “Tech for Social Good”.
02 Logo Design
In the first stage of design, the logo is designed around “being interesting and technological”. We decide to start with the number “20” by combining it with QQ and space elements. This implies that QQ is continuously exploring the outside world and looking for the interesting content from multiple dimensions of vision. To fit the style of “universe exploration”, we design the exclusive badge for this exhibition, which adopts the concept of space and combines with elements of stars, starry sky, astronauts and so on. Simple geometry and bold color are consistent with the youth trend of “QQ is more fun”.
03 Concept & Design
1.Space QQ
The space suit of Space QQ is similar to the ones shown in the science fiction movies like “Interstellar” and “The Martian”. We follow the latest and the most famous fashion trend in sneakers since 2018 as “ugly & oversize” in the sneaker design of Space QQ. This combination of the latest fashion and space suits makes the overall design trendy and interesting, without which the space suits might just be a superficial concept.
2. QQ X PUPU
This setup consists of two back-to-back IPs, 20-year-old QQ and 1-year-old PUPU. Tencent has a variety of Penguin IPs, and in addition to the classic QQ, there are many other characteristic penguins including PUPU, BabyQ and so on. Among them, PUPU comes from outer space and it is the main image of Nextradio products. The classic QQ and the new generation PUPU explore the space together, which implies that IPs are constantly innovating and embracing the new generations to make mutual efforts to provide young users with more technological and social entertainment services.
04 Final Design
05 8M QQ Model
It is a big challenge to produce this giant model, so we use the computer based 3D model to produce an 8M-high foam model first, and repeatedly check whether the foam one is of the same shape with the design. After the constant polish, the final foam model is used for the turnover formwork.
First, the foam mold is sprayed with muddy water for a later demoulding, and then with the gypsum water. The hemp yarn is added to enhance the model firmness. When the plaster model is dried, we take the inside foam one out and spray a layer of muddy water in the model (still for the later demoulding), and then add the resin and fiber cloth/felt. After drying the materials and breaking the outside gypsum, we can get the inside FRP model.
The steel framework is welded inside the shaped FRP model to serve as reinforcement. The demoulded model can be very rough, so the appearance of FRP needs to be polished to make the surface smooth and the details adjusted. After this, we begin to plaster and render the model for three times, in order to fill the gaps and flaws to make the model more realistic and completed. Then we try to work on the color matching to realize the ideal effect, and color the model gradually.
We spray the protective paint to prevent fading after coloring, and when the paint is dried, the whole model is cleaned to prepare for the exclusive sticker attachment. Then the position of the sticker is determined and sticked one by one. The next step is to construct and install the model, and the final repair work will be done after the construction due to the abrasion in the process.
Finally, the giant QQ model is presented perfectly.
06 Sticker Design
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of QQ, we design the sticker to match with the 8M-high giant QQ model. The slogan “QQ is more fun” is as the starting point of design to add the interesting and playful attitude into various brands, and bring a sense of fun and fashion to the serious vision of the brand logo. To coordinate with the shape of the giant QQ astronauts, we refer to the mechanical elements such as space shuttles and machines in the sticker design, which means that the design of each brand would not only be interesting, but need to conform to the style of universe and technology exploration as well.
We refine the details in this direction for several rounds, and select the final design that can represent each brand. Then we try to put the sticker on the space QQ model repeatedly to find out the most suitable position so that they can match perfectly. Through the collision of logo redesign and space QQ, the brand can be promoted to the largest extent.
07 Figure Design
We also make a mini PVC toy with the same shape as the giant Space QQ as a surprise for this 20th anniversary. In the toy design, we place a small magnet inside the toy as a mechanism, so that QQ and PUPU can be easily disassembled and combined.
Moreover, a special packing box is designed for it which is basically black and from the perspective of “space and universe”. The design of the printing pattern is based on Space QQ to linearize the model and combine it with the anniversary logo. We match it with striking images through foil stamping technology, which effectively demonstrates the brand characteristics of youth in QQ. To reduce the communication misunderstanding in the post-production, we quickly render out the package’s 3D effects from several important angles at the same time, which can be a very intuitive reference.
08 Product Design
08 Product Design
1. Poster Design
As for the design of propaganda materials for the anniversary, we have adopted the Space QQ IP as the main subject which can best represent the exhibition. As the exclusive element, Space QQ is closely related to science and technology, and it is interesting and trendy as well. Based on the characteristics of space exploration, we extract out universe elements as the propaganda content to make the poster design more worth seeing and appreciating.
2. T-Shirt Design
The theme is directly and concisely shown in the T-shirt with universe elements and representative graphics derived from the 20th anniversary logo. We place the striking graphics in the back side of T-shirt, and use the coordinate axis and longitude/latitude infographics to consist with the abstract universe elements. The sense of science and technology in the T-shirt design becomes stronger, which shows the vision of “Tech for Social Good” in a clearer way.
09 Exhibition Design
The “QQ 20th Anniversary Exhibition” is jointly held by QQ and COCO Park (Futian, Shenzhen). The exhibition hall has a simple cubic shape and the main colors are white and grey, which is similar to the space station. The white light bars outline the gate with the exclusive anniversary badge on the front wall. The sense of future, science and technology is so impressive that it is just like a large QQ space station on the earth.
The wall next to the gate is equipped with a technological holographic projector, which shows the images of QQ in different periods and the key events for the past 20 years. The different QQ images are shown with holographic projection, from the initial fat QQ to the current QQ in the new version, and thus the audience can know the QQ evolution history clearly. In the middle of the room we have QQ cross-border figures in all generations, and there is always one type that can capture your heart!
The exhibition also has a cross-border cooperation with % Arabica. The simple and fresh design of the coffee booth perfectly integrates into the anniversary exhibition style. It is complementarily pleasant to enjoy the exhibition while drinking the delicious coffee.
The blue tunnel with light creates a strong and mystery atmosphere in which the time fragment seem to flicker and pass by. Scan the two-dimensional code on the wall with QQ, and your exclusive time tunnel “QQ Personal Trajectory” will be generated immediately, which can remind you of many memories.
13 LED screens are used to form the “Gallery of Retro Head Portrait” in conjunction with Pitu. You can walk into the cabin with interaction devices, and stand in front of the camera lens. After a while, 13 retro head portraits which is instantly synthesized based on your image will appear on the 13 screens in front of you, as the experience of an instant “face changing”. The personal image is integrated into the classic QQ head portraits which you might use before, and this will create a unique reissue of head posters.
Conclusion
The QQ 20th Anniversary Exhibition not only includes the design of the exhibition hall, but also has many other designs such as marketing, operation activities, peripheral commodities and so on. It is closely connected and indispensable to build the whole system of exhibition design, in which Space QQ explores the field of science and technology together with the new generation PUPU, impling the vision of continuous innovation, exploration, and “Tech for Social Good”. We always aim to provide young users with more technological and social entertainment services, and we will also make every effort to achieve “QQ is more fun”.
