Category — Events

Tokyo Visualist is a joint collaboration by Satoru Yamashita (+81) and Masako Shinn (Graphis). The book explores the work of 32 “cutting edge” artists and designers through interviews and essays by curators including David Elliot (Mori Art Museum) and Sarah Suzuki (MoMA). It attempts to decipher the current for clues on what lies ahead in the future. Unfortunately I won’t be able to make it but if you are in NY on March 2nd they are having an event at the Japan Society that would be worthwhile.

featured artist Tomoko Konoike

featured artist Hideki Inaba

featured artist Kohei Nawa

Kobe Design University recently held their senior exhibition. Designer Masahiro Minami took a trip over and came back with pictures of some fantastic, high-quality work. So many young, talented designers! Here are some of my favorites.
(all images by Masahiro Minami. Click to enlarge)

This is actually the underlay for a bento box; a solution to decade-old problems like leakage and movement. Love the aesthetic!

A wooden bicycle complete with wooden gears. Only a student could come up with something so outrageous.

Rad oversized rings

I’m not quite sure what this is but I love the display.

This 3D cutout must have taken several endless nights.

Of particular interest to me was this futuristic digital camera. It’s a working model that was co-developed by the University. The way it works is you drape it over your neck and take photographs by creating a frame using your hands. Neat!

Tama Art University, commonly referred to as Tamabi, is a prestigious art school – the RISD of Tokyo – that has produced several notable artists and designers, including Naoto Fukasawa and Issey Miyake. Therefore, we like to pay attention to some of the young artists being churned out of this educational system. With less than 1 month till the exhibition, Tamabi’s information design department has launched a website showcasing the work of their graduating seniors. The work will be on display at Modapolitica in Minami-Aoyama from March 12th – 14th. Here as some pieces that caught my eye.
* denotes titles translated arbitrarily by the author

“Subterranean Fear*” by Masaya Noguchi
A proposed redesign of sidewalks the recreates the fleeting sense of fear one experiences when something unexpected appears below their feet.

“Oripica” by Shion Suminokura
When was the last time you made origami by folding light?

“Calorie Trade Project” by Yoshie Takahashi
An En-Chari (Entertainment-Chrity) project that allows the user to reallocate their own calories to children in Kenya.

“Multiple Perspectives of the Pacific War*” by Mayu Fujimaki
A computer-based reenactment of events of the Pacific War. The user, as he or she engages with the system, is prompted to view events of the war from multiple perspectives.

Related:

• Tamabi’s BFA show from last year

Planning on checking out the Tokyo 69th International Gift Show starting tomorrow and continuing on through the end of the week? Be sure to check out the Takahashi Kogei booth where designers Oji Masanori and Rina Ono will be showcasing their respective new works.

From Oji Masanori: KAMI dishes, a new addition to the KAMI line of paper-thin wooden cups. To be used as coasters, lids or whatever you want, really. Also, the Kakudo wooden butter cases.

From Rina Ono: The wooden desert cup and goblet.
Wood is horrible at conducting heat, which makes it ideal as a container for cold deserts because you don’t get condensation!

Related:

• Baby In Table by Oji Masanori
• Cowakka by Rina Inao

Earlier this week the 100-day mark was breached, counting down to the start of the 2010 Shanghai EXPO. Japan unveiled their pavilion awkwardly titled “Eco-Breathing Architecture.” I twittered about my dislike of the structure and received a bunch of feedback confirming that I was not alone in my thoughts. So I thought I would post the pictures here to see what others thought. In short, I think it looks like a blob of protoplasm, greedily consuming everything in its path. Not a very sustainable vision. More pictures over at Nikkei Kenplatz.(login required)

Images © JETRO

It was designed by Yutaka Hikosaka, of Space Incubator, an architectural and environmental design firm. He was responsible for the Nagakute Japan Pavilion (Aichi EXPO 2005) and the Dairinkai Water Fantasium (Osaka EXPO 1990).

Not sure what to do for your first design event of the new decade? On January 3, 2010, make a trip to IMS Plaza in Fukuoka for a traditional tea ceremony in a not so traditional setting. Fuan (literally, floating hermitage) is a floating tea room comprised of a helium balloon veiled with an ultra-light material called super organza. Weighing in at a mere 11 grams per square meter, the weight of the material counteracts the upward pressure of the helium, creating a perfectly balanced structure without walls or pillars.

On a side-note, the material was first introduced into the design community in 2007 during TOKYO FIBER’07――SENSEWARE curated by Kenya Hara.  It was used extensively by artists and designers like Yasuhiro  Suzuki, Naoto Fukasawa and Taku Sato. Kengo Kuma also participated in the exhibition.

The architect Kengo Kuma talks about his creation, which was originally developed in 2007, as being a space of virtual reality where a state of conciousness in the form of a  floating body can exist. Unfortunately tickets to enter the actual floating tea house are already sold out but you can still (get there early enough to) grab one of the 20 seats surrounding the structure.

Related:

• Kanayama Community Center by Kengo Kuma
• Kenya Hara Retrospective Part I, Part II, Part III
• Naoto Fukasawa’s MUJI CD Player
• 100% Design Tokyo curated by Taku Sato
  
  

On Friday the Whitney Museum announced the list of artists selected to participate in the Whitney Biennial from February 25 through May 30 2010. Naturall, the majority of constituents are newcomers and one of them is Aki Sasamoto, a Brooklyn-based Japanese artist practicing in the media of performance and installation.

“Secrets of My Mother’s Child” (2009)

Unfortunatly, I haven’t had the opportunity to see any of the recent Columbia grad’s work in person but if you are interested in learning more, Ashley Rawlings (who I had the utmost pleasure hosting for lunch several weeks ago) has a piece on her in the latest issue of ArtAsiaPacific, in which he discusses, among other things, the curious piece above.

via art observed

Related:

• Ouch | 2008 Whitney Biennial

This sounds really interesting and perhaps worth a trip. Shiseido Art Director by day and installation artist by night, Hisashi Narita (aka Cue-chan) will be holding a show at Gallery Yori between December 12 – 27. Narita primarily uses textiles in his work and his previous shows, “Bedroom Exhibition” and “Ishoku” (both 2008) were both highly tactile and  engaged the viewers in a dialogue concerning clothing as costume.

His upcoming show is curiously titled “My Closet Only Opens Once Every 2 Years.” There’s not much information available on the gallery website but here is what the invite looks like.

PS this may sound kind of shallow, but I like it when artists put a little thought into the title of their exhibition.

On Monday I went to go check out the opening reception of JAPAN BRAND: The Wish List pop-up shop at Felissimo’s headquarters in midtown Manhattan. The show runs through December 24th and is a must-see for anyone scouring the market for unique gifts. The impressive lineup is suitable for all budgets, and I mean all. Prices start in the single digits for exquisite washi-paper mailing cards and go as high as $18,000 for an amazing bicycle designed by Alexander Gelman and hand-lacquered by the Yamanaka Urushi masters of Ishikawa Prefecture.

Japan Brand: The Wish List
Felissimo Design House
10 West 56th St, New York
Only until December 24
Monday-Saturday, 11am-6pm

One of the highlights for me was seeing some pieces from the Nippon Sense collection, a masterfully designed series of furniture that was a collaborative effort between the Japanese and Italians.

Alexander Gelman’s urushi bicycle

Monacca bags hand-crafted from environmentally sustainable Yanase cedar sheets harvested in Kochi Prefecture.

An awesome selection of knives for any respectable epicurean.

Also, be sure to check their website for upcoming events through the end of this month and into December that include tempting hands-on sake tasting, a cooking demo from Nobu chef Akiko Thurnauer and much more.

The winners of the 2009 Toyama Product Design Competition were recently announced. I wasn’t crazy about the first place so instead I’m going to direct your attention to the runner up…but of course feel free to check out all 3 winners on the website. This year’s theme was color. Not exactly a unique theme but inspiring none the less. Especially when you have Jin Kuramato applying the theme to traditional wooden bowls and tea cups. And I love how they stack!

Related:

• Toyama Design Competition | Drop by Tetsuo Shibuya
• Jin Kuramoto