Semiotic Construction of Website Images of Chinese and Australian Memorial from the Perspective of Visual Grammar

Abstract

Memorial are cultural institutions that preserve historical memory and convey national identity through visual symbols. Adopting a qualitative research approach, this study analyzes the web-page images of the Site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the Australian War Memorial within the theoretical framework of Visual Grammar (VG) proposed by Kress and van Leeuwen. The findings are as follows: Regarding representational meaning, the Chinese website prioritizes transactional reaction processes and symbolic processes to forge direct ideological connections, whereas the Australian website favors non-transactional reactions and classificational processes to encourage individual interpretation and factual clarity; Concerning interactive meaning, the Chinese website employs high-modality colors and high-angle perspectives to evoke emotional resonance and position viewers as inheritors of historical responsibility, while the Australian website uses low-modality colors and eye-level angles to foster introspective reflection and egalitarian dialogue; In terms of compositional meaning, the Chinese website adopts vertical layouts and implicit framing through color contrast to reinforce hierarchical narrative flow, whereas the Australian website utilizes horizontal given-new layouts and explicit framing lines to support step-by-step explanatory logic. Theoretically, this study extends the application of VG to semiotic construction of website images of memorials. Practically, it provides a reference for optimizing the website design of memorials across different cultural contexts.