Summer Palace Tour by YeZhang Sets New Standard for Cultural Heritage Branding

How Thoughtful Brand Design and Cultural Products Help Heritage Institutions Create Engaging Experiences for Contemporary Visitors

What happens when a royal garden that once served emperors decides to celebrate 110 years of welcoming the public? If you are the kind of person who imagines dusty brochures and forgettable merchandise, prepare to have your expectations delightfully upended. When cultural heritage institutions embrace sophisticated brand design thinking, something remarkable emerges: ancient stories become tangible, portable, and irresistibly shareable.

The Summer Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site anticipating 20 million visitors annually, recently faced a fascinating creative challenge. How does a 268-year-old garden speak to smartphone-wielding visitors who grew up with digital entertainment at their fingertips? The answer, as demonstrated by the Summer Palace Tour brand design created by YeZhang and the team at Beijing Jiaotong University, lies in understanding that heritage is not a museum piece to be preserved behind glass. Heritage is a living conversation between past and present, and brand design serves as the translator.

The following exploration examines how cultural institutions can develop brand identities that honor their historical significance while creating emotional connections with contemporary audiences. You will discover specific approaches to visual language development, product ecosystem thinking, and audience engagement strategies that transform heritage sites from destinations people visit once into experiences they carry with them forever. Along the way, the article will unpack the design decisions that earned the Summer Palace Tour project recognition as a Golden A' Design Award winner in Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design in 2024, and what those decisions reveal about the future of cultural heritage branding.

The Particular Challenge of Heritage Institution Branding

Cultural heritage institutions operate within a fascinating paradox. Their primary asset is authenticity rooted in centuries of history, yet their survival depends on connecting with audiences whose attention spans are measured in seconds. The visual identity systems heritage institutions develop must accomplish something extraordinarily delicate: communicating reverence for the past while generating excitement about visiting in the present.

Consider the complexity facing a site like the Summer Palace. The Summer Palace is not a startup seeking to disrupt an industry or a consumer brand chasing seasonal trends. The Summer Palace is a cultural treasure that has witnessed dynastic changes, survived wars, and transitioned from exclusive royal retreat to public park. Every design decision carries weight. Every visual choice speaks to millions of visitors from dozens of countries, each bringing their own cultural expectations and historical knowledge.

The Summer Palace Tour brand design confronted the heritage branding challenge by establishing a clear design philosophy: create visual communications that reveal what the designers describe as "the new cultural connotation of this historical garden" while giving the Summer Palace "an international visual image." Notice the precision in that language. The designers did not seek to replace the palace's identity. The team sought to reveal additional dimensions of meaning that already existed, waiting for the right visual expression.

Heritage institutions benefit tremendously from the mindset shift toward revelation rather than replacement. Rather than asking how to modernize their image (which can lead to awkward attempts at trendiness), institutions can ask what stories remain untold, what beauty remains unseen, and what connections remain unmade. The design challenge becomes one of discovery and translation rather than transformation.

Foundational thinking about revelation shapes every subsequent design decision. When brand designers approach heritage institutions with genuine curiosity about hidden narratives and unspoken aesthetic richness, the resulting work carries an authenticity that manufactured coolness simply cannot achieve.

The Strategic Power of 2.5D Illustration in Cultural Communication

Visual style choices in heritage branding reveal strategic priorities. The Summer Palace Tour project employed what designers call 2.5D illustration, a technique that adds dimensional depth to otherwise flat imagery through careful use of perspective, shadow, and layered composition. The 2.5D stylistic choice accomplished several objectives simultaneously.

Traditional architectural illustration often prioritizes documentary accuracy. Elevation drawings, floor plans, and photographic documentation serve important purposes, but documentary approaches speak primarily to specialists and historians. The 2.5D approach used in the Summer Palace Tour project transforms architectural documentation into visual storytelling. Buildings gain personality. Rooflines become rhythmic patterns. Structural relationships become narratives about how different structures converse with each other across the garden landscape.

The design team illustrated three major architectural clusters encompassing more than twenty traditional Chinese buildings. Each structure required careful study and translation into the 2.5D style. The resulting illustrations capture essential architectural characteristics while introducing a sense of wonder and discovery. Viewers encounter familiar buildings rendered in unfamiliar ways, creating what psychologists might call productive dissonance: recognition combined with novelty that commands attention and rewards exploration.

Color selection reinforced the strategic approach to cultural communication. The palette of black, red, and green draws directly from traditional Chinese architectural color schemes. Vermillion gates, black lacquer, green glazed tiles: these colors carry centuries of cultural meaning. By limiting the palette to historically significant hues, the design team created illustrations that feel simultaneously contemporary and classical. The colors read as modern and bold to audiences unfamiliar with their historical significance while resonating as authentically traditional to those who recognize their origins.

The illustrative approach employed in the Summer Palace Tour offers valuable lessons for cultural institutions considering brand development. The visual language you choose communicates priorities. Photorealism says documentation. Abstraction says concept. The 2.5D style chosen here says invitation: come closer, look carefully, discover something unexpected about something ancient.

Product Ecosystem Thinking: The Small Hand-Carry Philosophy

Perhaps the most innovative aspect of the Summer Palace Tour brand design lies in the approach to cultural products. The design team introduced what they call the "Small Hand-carry" concept, a philosophy that transforms how visitors physically interact with heritage.

The phrase itself carries poetic resonance in its original conception. Visitors can "easily play around the Summer Palace, holding the history in the palm of their hands, taking the beauty of the scenery at their fingertips, and carrying good gifts in their hands." The Small Hand-carry concept is not marketing language. The concept represents design philosophy expressed through product development.

The product range demonstrates the Small Hand-carry philosophy in action. A souvenir box measuring 200mm by 150mm by 80mm contains two posters, four key rings, one adhesive tape, one envelope, and one notebook. Each item serves a distinct function while reinforcing the overall brand identity. The key rings transform architectural illustrations into wearable artifacts. The adhesive tape allows visitors to incorporate Summer Palace imagery into their own creative projects. The notebook becomes a container for personal memories associated with the visit.

Material choices elevated the Summer Palace Tour products beyond typical souvenir merchandise. The team employed specialty papers including coated art paper and craft paper, combined with printing techniques including screen printing and gold stamping. Production decisions of this caliber communicate respect for the cultural heritage being represented. The products feel substantial, considered, and worthy of the stories they carry.

For heritage institutions, the product ecosystem approach offers a powerful model. Rather than developing merchandise as an afterthought or revenue generator, consider how physical products extend the visitor experience beyond the site itself. What do visitors carry home? What physical objects trigger memories of their visit months or years later? What gifts do visitors choose when they want to share their experience with friends and family? The answers to visitor-focused questions shape lasting relationships between institutions and their audiences.

The Summer Palace Tour products specifically targeted younger Chinese visitors, particularly those interested in what has become known as the China-Chic aesthetic movement. The targeting was not accidental. Research identified the younger demographic as particularly responsive to products that blend traditional cultural elements with contemporary design sensibilities.

Research-Driven Design for Audience Connection

Effective heritage branding requires understanding who visits, why they visit, and what experiences they seek. The Summer Palace Tour project demonstrates the value of research-driven design thinking in cultural contexts.

The design team explicitly identified their target audience: young visitors seeking to experience the charm of what they termed China-Chic ancient architecture. The young visitor segment represents a significant cultural moment. Young Chinese visitors increasingly seek authentic connections with their cultural heritage, expressed through contemporary aesthetic frameworks. They want tradition, but they want tradition that speaks their visual language.

The research methodology combined literature reviews with brand planning exercises to determine both design style and specific products for development. The systematic approach ensured that creative decisions connected to documented audience preferences rather than designer assumptions. The resulting brand vision centered on creating "the most distinctive royal garden buildings with 2.5D and China-Chic style."

The research-informed approach produced specific design outcomes. The visual style appealed to younger audiences while remaining accessible to visitors of all ages. The product assortment addressed actual purchasing behaviors and gift-giving patterns. The overall brand experience aligned with how contemporary visitors document and share their cultural experiences.

Heritage institutions benefit from similar research investments. Understanding visitor demographics, motivations, and behaviors transforms design from guesswork into strategic communication. When you know who you are speaking to, you can craft messages that resonate rather than hoping for accidental connections.

The research also revealed an important insight about contemporary cultural consumption. Modern visitors do not want simplified or dumbed-down heritage experiences. They want sophisticated engagement with authentic content, presented through visual languages they find appealing. The 2.5D illustrations respect both the architectural complexity of the Summer Palace and the aesthetic sophistication of contemporary audiences.

Cohesive Brand Systems Across Multiple Touchpoints

Heritage institutions communicate through dozens of touchpoints, from entrance tickets to directional signage, from gift shop merchandise to digital presence. The Summer Palace Tour project demonstrates how cohesive brand systems unify diverse communication moments into a singular experience.

The project scope encompassed what designers describe as varied cultural and creative products, including publicity materials, office supplies, and souvenirs. Each category served different functional purposes while maintaining consistent visual identity. Tickets measuring 100mm by 50mm carried the same illustrative approach as A1 posters measuring 594mm by 841mm. Scale changed. Brand identity remained constant.

Consistency creates cumulative brand impact. Each touchpoint reinforces the others. A visitor encounters the illustrative style on their entrance ticket. They see the same approach in directional materials. They find the style again in the gift shop. By the time visitors leave, the visual language has become associated in their memory with the entire Summer Palace experience.

The distribution strategy extended beyond physical presence at the palace itself. Cultural products appeared online through the official website and served as anniversary activity gifts. The multi-channel distribution approach recognized that brand building happens wherever audiences encounter institutional communications.

For enterprises and institutions developing heritage brand systems, the comprehensive approach offers a useful template. Map every communication touchpoint. Identify opportunities for visual consistency. Consider how each moment of brand contact contributes to cumulative impression building. The goal is not identical repetition across channels but rather coherent variation that strengthens overall brand recognition.

Those interested in examining how the principles translate into award-winning execution can Explore the Award-Winning Summer Palace Tour Brand Design through the A' Design Award's winner showcase, where detailed project imagery reveals the specific implementation of strategic approaches.

The University Partnership Model for Heritage Design

An often-overlooked aspect of the Summer Palace Tour project is its institutional origin. The design team operated under Beijing Jiaotong University's School of Architecture and Design, which offers programs in Visual Communication Design, Digital Media Art, Environmental Design, Architecture, and Urban and Rural Planning.

The university partnership model offers advantages for heritage institutions seeking sophisticated brand development. Academic design programs bring research methodologies, access to emerging talent, and freedom from purely commercial considerations. Students and faculty can invest time in understanding cultural contexts that commercial agencies under tight deadlines might abbreviate.

Beijing Jiaotong University's design team has developed particular expertise in heritage branding, having undertaken projects for other significant Chinese cultural sites including the Old Summer Palace and Beijing Zoo. Accumulated experience of this nature translates into nuanced understanding of how visual communication serves cultural institutions.

The project timeline reflects the thorough approach academic partnerships can support. Work began in Beijing in July 2023 and reached completion in January 2024. Six months allowed for the research, conceptual development, iterative refinement, and production coordination that comprehensive heritage branding requires. The exhibition phase extended from June through September 2024, providing extended opportunity for visitor engagement with the brand system.

Heritage institutions considering brand development projects might explore similar partnerships with design education programs. Universities often seek projects that provide students with real-world experience on culturally significant work. The resulting collaborations can produce outcomes that satisfy institutional needs while contributing to design education.

What Heritage Branding Reveals About Contemporary Design Practice

The Summer Palace Tour project illuminates broader patterns in how design thinking applies to cultural contexts. As heritage institutions worldwide grapple with audience development and relevance, the approaches demonstrated here offer transferable insights.

First, visual language must serve strategic communication objectives. The 2.5D illustration style was not chosen for novelty but for its capacity to communicate specific qualities: dimensional richness, contemporary appeal, and respect for architectural detail. Every style choice should answer the question of what strategic purpose the style serves.

Second, product ecosystems extend brand experiences beyond single moments. The Small Hand-carry philosophy recognizes that brand relationships continue long after visitors depart. Physical products become memory anchors and conversation starters. Products transform individual experiences into shareable stories.

Third, research grounds creative decisions in audience understanding. Assumptions about what visitors want often prove incomplete or incorrect. Systematic research reveals actual preferences, behaviors, and aspirations. Design decisions informed by research connect with audiences more reliably than decisions based on designer intuition alone.

Fourth, comprehensive brand systems create cumulative impact through consistency. Isolated design excellence matters less than coordinated communication across touchpoints. Visitors experience brands through accumulated impressions, not individual moments.

Fifth, institutional partnerships can unlock capabilities that single organizations lack. The university collaboration model brought academic rigor, emerging talent, and research methodologies to a project that benefited from exactly those resources.

The principles apply beyond cultural heritage contexts. Any organization seeking to communicate historical depth, authentic values, or cultural significance can learn from how heritage institutions approach brand development. The techniques scale from national landmarks to local historical societies, from ancient monuments to century-old businesses.

Looking Forward: Heritage Branding in an Evolving Landscape

Cultural heritage institutions face an evolving landscape of visitor expectations, digital communication channels, and global competition for attention. The approaches demonstrated in the Summer Palace Tour project suggest directions for continued development.

Visual communication will likely continue trending toward styles that blend historical authenticity with contemporary appeal. As audiences become more visually sophisticated through constant exposure to designed content, their expectations for institutional communications rise accordingly. Heritage brands that feel dated or generic increasingly struggle to compete for attention.

Product ecosystems will expand beyond physical merchandise into digital experiences, augmented reality applications, and personalized content. The Small Hand-carry philosophy could evolve to include carrying heritage in smartphone apps, social media content, and digital collectibles. The core insight remains valid: visitors want to take pieces of their experiences with them.

Research methodologies will become more sophisticated as institutions gain access to behavioral data, sentiment analysis, and real-time feedback mechanisms. Understanding visitors will move from periodic surveys to continuous monitoring and rapid iteration.

Brand system thinking will become more essential as communication channels proliferate. Heritage institutions already communicate through websites, social media platforms, third-party review sites, visitor-generated content, and traditional media coverage. Maintaining coherent identity across the expanding landscape requires systematic approaches to brand governance.

For institutions preparing for the future of heritage branding, the Summer Palace Tour project offers encouragement. Thoughtful design, grounded in research and expressed through comprehensive brand systems, can create experiences that honor heritage while engaging contemporary audiences. The challenge is significant. The opportunity is remarkable.

Synthesis: What Cultural Heritage Branding Teaches All Organizations

The Summer Palace Tour brand design achieved recognition as a Golden A' Design Award winner because the project demonstrated excellence across multiple dimensions: strategic clarity, visual sophistication, comprehensive execution, and audience relevance. The qualities exemplified in the Summer Palace Tour matter for cultural heritage institutions and for any organization seeking to communicate authentic values through design.

Heritage branding teaches patience. Quick solutions rarely capture the depth that heritage represents. The six-month development timeline for the Summer Palace Tour project reflects the investment required to develop work that honors complex histories while speaking to contemporary audiences.

Heritage branding teaches humility. Designers serve the heritage they represent rather than imposing personal visions upon the heritage. The design team sought to reveal existing cultural connotations rather than to invent new narratives. The attitude of service produces work that resonates with audiences who sense the difference between authentic interpretation and superficial styling.

Heritage branding teaches integration. Individual design elements matter less than how elements work together across touchpoints and over time. Comprehensive thinking produces comprehensive results.

As you consider how your organization communicates its own heritage, values, and authentic qualities, what design approaches might reveal stories you have not yet told? What visual languages might speak to audiences you have not yet reached? What products might extend your brand experience beyond the moments when audiences directly engage with you? The answers to these questions shape how organizations build lasting relationships with the people they serve.