▲ Contributed by HYU-DMC

On April 8, Hanyang University Design Management Center (HYU-DMC) unveiled two newly-designed mascots of HYU: HY-Lion 2.0 and HYNari. HY-Lion 2.0 is an updated version of the previous HY-Lion mascot. It has a much simpler design and comes with a variety of gestures and facial expressions. Kim Min-young, the Head of HYU-DMC, said the team worked to simplify design features of the new characters to facilitate their usage on mobile platforms. “The way we consume characters has fundamentally changed in parallel with the rise of mobile platforms,” kim said. “If the initial HYLion was nothing more than a solid symbol of university, HY-Lion 2.0 is a much more flexible tool that can be used for mobile communication.”

The most notable change is that the new characters are equipped with personalities and stories of their own. HY-Lion 2.0, a heroic student of HYU who goes around the campus helping students in trouble, befriends HY-Nari who only appears occasionally during spring. Their friendship sets off when HY-Nari begins to feel encouraged by HY-Lion 2.0’s courageousness and persistently follows it around on campus.

By providing a sense of vitality to the otherwise boring and distant mascots, Kim and her team members intended to make the new characters living members of HYU, whom students can empathize and relate with. Kim said: “We wish that the campus story around HY-Lion 2.0 and HY-Nari continues to evolve and be supplemented by students of HYU.” The team hopes to create more connections between the new characters and the HYU students by installing character benches or photo zones across the campus. “We are working hard to consolidate HY-Lion 2.0 and HY-Nari as brands of HYU,” Kim added.