PROJECT NANJING CONFUCIUS TEMPLE
Nanjing Confucius Temple is located in the district of Qinhuai City and sits along the north shore of the Qinhuai River. The Confucius Temple is the highest institution of China’s First National Party and an ancient China cultural landmark. The temple is known as the talent, culture and education centre of Nanjing during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Most of the Confucius Temple today was reconstructed in the 1980s according to the architectural form of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, except for the facade which remained seriously damaged.
Harmony of old and new
In 2013, JWDK was invited to upgrade the overall cultural brand and commercial atmosphere of the Confucius Temple scenic area in Nanjing. After a month of market research and brainstorming, JWDK defined the traditional cultural elements important to the area as well as local popular commercial needs of the visitors.
Our overall strategy was to “restore the ancient story and harmoniously combine life experience, cultural etiquette and modern commercial atmosphere” in the streets of the area. Our design approach was to peel back the layers of commercial additions over modern times to reveal the original shapes of the buildings. We unified shop door heights, introduced unique pattern details and honoured original materials. The design followed modern principles of size and safety without destroying the architectural qualities of the facades.
Shortly after the success of the business atmosphere, JWDK had the privilege of upgrading the overall brand identity system of the Nanjing Confucius Temple. The new brand logo is highly descriptive telling the story of the ancient capital. Additional pattern work was created with typography and colour schemes which created a unified look across the visitor zones.
Visitor success
After the transformation of the Nanjing Confucius Temple, the number of visitors grew 25-30% with a tourist satisfaction rate of 93.75% to become a model for China’s ancient upgrades.
