SEMIOTIC DECONSTRUCTION OF JIANGXI NUO MASK VISUAL SYMBOLS: A CLASSIFICATION OF CORE AND ADAPTABLE ELEMENTS AS A BASIS FOR METRO ENVIRONMENTAL GRAPHIC DESIGN TRANSLATION

Abstract

Jiangxi Nuo masks are highly recognizable visual symbols of Gan Nuo culture, carrying ritual meanings, belief systems, role identities, and regional cultural memory. As intangible cultural heritage increasingly enters contemporary public spaces, the question of how to deconstruct and translate traditional visual symbols while retaining their cultural meanings has become important in visual communication design and environmental graphic design. This paper focuses on the semiotic deconstruction of the visual symbolic system of Jiangxi Nuo masks and classifies their core cultural elements and adaptable translation elements. The study adopts literature analysis, visual material review, and visual symbol coding. Four representative mask samples, including Kaishan, Nuo Gong, Bao Sanniang, and Sun Wukong, are coded through five dimensions: form structure, color system, decorative motifs, expression features, and role meaning. The coding results show that role identity, ritual function, core symbolic meaning, and typical structural features should be retained as core cultural elements, while contours, local motifs, color relationships, and expression intensity can be adapted according to the visual order, information hierarchy, and psychological comfort requirements of metro public space. The findings provide a structured basis for selecting Nuo mask symbols and matching their adaptable forms and visual intensity with different functional contexts in metro environmental graphic design.

Keywords: Jiangxi Nuo Mask, Visual Symbol, Semiotic Deconstruction, Intangible Cultural Heritage, Metro Environmental Graphic Design