Shuāngxǐ or Double Happy is a “Chinese ornamental design commonly used as a decoration”. It is composed of two characters meaning joy, compressed into a ligature. You’ll commonly find this character slapped all over wedding paraphernalia. Double Happiness is also a brand of cheap cigarettes here – smokers rejoice.
However, the application I really like is this clever local twist on the common western expression of “hearting” an object, a person, a place:
Take that, New York! This shot is from outside Produc-T; a Shanghainese clothing brand with a shop in Taikang Lu. They design t-shirts with a contemporary take on Chinese icons. Think tees plastered with ironic noodle/Mao imagery and cute totes to stuff cash in. There is an I 囍 SH version available of course.
Hm, it’s been a good week, and despite the bumpy language barriers, I’m starting to think I heart Shanghai.
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Never mind my silly Flickr question, here it is! I love that. I should get one for my mother, she was born in Shanghai!
Johanna: Your family seems to come from all over the globe… – that’s fantastic – lots of heritage and roots to get in touch with :)