A New Interpretation Of Digitalized Design For Classic Illustrations In The Four Medical Tantras Of Tibetan Medicine

Art Thangka, originates from Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, is a typical example of scroll painting characterized by Chinese silk with important aesthetic values and religious function. The art form of Thangka is quite similar to the traditional Chinese realistic painting and has a big influence to the world for the past thousand years. One of the most special Thangka----Sman Thang, categorized to the medical teaching wall chart with distinctive Tibetan culture, and its function similar to the modern medical teaching wall chart. Additionally, the series of Sman Thang is not only the demonstrations of medical classics, medical teaching wall chart, but also the artistic works with great aesthetic values. In short, after years of baptism and scientific test, Smangn Thang has become a unique treasure of the medicine and art world.This paper explores a new way of digital design for the classic chart in the Tibetan medical book The Four Medicine Tantras.Through combing the mysterious Sman Thang with the modern mobile phone app, the new digital design can be widely used to guide people’s daily heath care. Moreover, by redesigning the classic chart (extracting from the Tibetan medical book) through the digital technology and merge them into the new app, it will make the App looks more vividly and user-friendly. Also, the relevant clothing package can be designed to support the usage of this new APP. The aesthetics and medical value strengthening design through the classic charts in such Tibetan medical book can make Sman Thang really understood and being used by modern people. At the same time, the design also helps to develop new ideas for the inheritance and development of culture of Sman Thang.There are six chapters in this article. The first chapter is the introduction, mainly elaborates the importance of choosing the topic, the domestic and foreign status and research methodology. The second chapter is about the Tibetan medicine and Sman Thang, it briefly introduces the related information of Tibetan medicine, explains the development process, production method, Sman Thang’s artistic features and values. The third chapter is the medical chart function of Sman Thang. It mainly discusses Sman Thang’s medicine theory and practical application through the book The Four Medicine Tantras. The forth chapter is about the necessity and possibility of making a new digital design. It shows a variety of necessity and possibility of digitizing the charts in the Tibetan medical book. The fifth chapter is the design for the classic Sman Thang’s charts in the book and supporting clothing design package. This chapter explains the idea, the proposal and implementation process. The sixth chapter is the conclusion and prospect. It shows the deficiencies of such design and looks well ahead for the possibilities of further research.