Fuwa Olympic Mascots Views
The Fuwa (Chinese: 福娃; pinyin: Fúwá; literally good-luck dolls , also known as Friendlies ), were the mascots of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The designs were created by Han Meilin, a famous Chinese artist.[1] The designs were publicly announced by the National Society of Chinese Classic Literature Studies on 11 November 2005 at an event marking the 1000th day before the opening of the games.
China has launched an extensive merchandising push for the mascots -- dubbed the Fuwa, Chinese for good-luck dolls -- that includes animated television shows and a cornucopia of T-shirts and trinkets sold at about 6,300 Olympics shops and sales counters. All over China, life-size plush Fuwa dolls now inhabit office lobbies, bus stations and tourist attractions.
All suggest the Fuwa risk joining a long tradition of Olympics mascots gone wrong. The idea of having a cute official mascot began innocently enough with Waldi the Dachshund in Munich in 1972. (Before that, pins for the 1968 winter games in Grenoble, France had featured Schuss, a man on skis.) By the time the confusing Whatzit? was introduced for the centennial Games in Atlanta in 1996, making fun of the official mascot had become another Olympic sport.
Critics also have complained it isn't clear whether the Fuwa are animals, children, or aliens. (The characters are officially referred to as children who also embody the natural characteristics of four of China's most popular animals. ) When they were unveiled to American audiences during the halftime show at a 2006 NFL Game, Joe Bryant, a blogger at Footballguys.com wasn't impressed. Why do the Olympic mascots have to look like some mutant Pokemon / Telletubbie thing, he wrote. What's wrong with a bull dog or a cougar or a sweat shop worker for a mascot?
Fuwa Olympic Mascots Images
