Is it possible to communicate with the Land of the Dragon without knowing its language? Is it possible to investigate this differing reality with its different historical path, made up of images, signs, symbols, colors and sensations? Yes, as long as you know the correct reading keys and the right cultural codes of a society that cannot be approached by simply translating the models borrowed from the Western world.

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Starting from the strength of the ideogram as iconic sign, passing through the symbolic meaning of colors, Barbara Pietrasanta guides us through the history of contemporary China using the images of advertising, art, design and habits that tell us about the meeting between Western and Chinese cultural models.
The book, which starts from the teaching experience of the author, begins with the impact that is reaching China today. Colors, huge billboards on unbelievable pylons, buildings of fifty floor and ideograms of neon signs have the power to strike, because the predominant language of contemporary Middle-earth is made of images, but also auditory and olfactory: it is a multi-sensory impact. This is the aspect of contemporary China that Barbara Pietrasanta’s book wants to grab: the one stricktly linked to advertising, art, design and habits that reveals the meeting between Western and Chinese cultural model.
Following a path that starts from the iconic strength of the ideogram used in trademarks and logos and goes through the symbolism of colors, we enter the world of consumption and its models, in the habits and lifestyles of the charming Land of the Dragon.
The experience of the Olympic games is also described in its communicative role, intended to strengthen Chinese national identity and China’s debut on the great stage of the world.
Regarding the made in Italy, the author analyses Italian brands that succeded in Chinese market and explains how much the Celestial Empire knows about our country and our traditions.
Contradictions and myths come to light and tell us about new needs and new consumption habits. New trends and new approaches to luxury come out through the evocative fascination of status and lifestyle pledged by advertising.
But this book also reveals that communication and representation are not all-around, that codes and values are related to different cultures and realities.
Ideogramma al neon is addressed to professional and students in the field of communication, to businessmen and companies who need to approach Chinese market, but also to anyone who wants to have an overview of the becoming of this new cultural and economic reality that can no longer be ignored.

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