DESIGNART TOKYO 2024 UNDER 30: Celebrating Emerging Young Creators
Tokyo, renowned as one of the world's most culturally diverse cities, is set to host Japan's largest and most prestigious design and art festival: DESIGNART TOKYO. This highly anticipated event will showcase various genres, including design, art, interior design, and fashion, offering a platform for creativity and innovation.
The festival's "UNDER30" program is a highlight, featuring five talented creators under 30. These individuals have been selected for their exceptional potential and are poised to become the next stars in the design and art world. The UNDER30 program consistently generates significant interest, serving as a launchpad for emerging talents and offering insight into the future of creative industries.
From left to right: AAAQ ©Andraditya Dhanu Respati / Hiroto Ikebe photo by Kodai Mizuguchi / HOJO AKIRA / Saki Takeshita ©Yuki Kawazoe / Straft (in alphabetical order)
AAAQ Creative Unit Selected by Hiroshi Koike/ NON-GRID
photo by Atsuro Miyako
Meet AAAQ, a dynamic creative unit formed by product designer and producer Atsuro Miyako and UI designer So Ohta. Established in 2021 after their graduation from Chiba University, AAAQ is based in Tokyo and has rapidly gained recognition for their innovative approach to design.
AAAQ’s philosophy is rooted in the continuous cycle of creation and inquiry, encapsulated by their guiding principle: "creating, creating, and creating answers to generate new questions." Their work is characterized by a deep sensitivity and thorough research, often exploring the unseen forces that shape our world and our unconscious interactions with them.
One of the standout phenomena they investigate is "photoelasticity," which vividly visualizes the invisible force of stress. At DESIGNART TOKYO 2024, AAAQ will present "Visible Stress," a groundbreaking work that leverages photoelasticity to reveal the intricate textures of light created by stress. This installation invites viewers to reconsider their surroundings and their own perceptions, unveiling a hidden world of beautiful, potent forces that typically go unnoticed.
Hiroto Ikebe (Textile Artist / Designer) Selected by Astrid Klein&Mark/Klein Dytham architecture
「MAYUGOMORI」FFP© photo by Yasunari Kikuma
After graduating with honours from Tama Art University, where he majored in Textile Design, this visionary artist views fabric as a "soft fossil" that preserves the memories of various cultures, customs, and beliefs. He conducts detailed fieldwork to unravel the memories and contexts associated with materials and techniques from diverse regions. He uses this knowledge to create unique textile designs and artworks that demonstrate his innovative experimental approach.
He focuses on the declining traditions of sericulture that have historically supported Japanese livelihoods. He explores the intricate relationships between "materials" and "producers" from the interaction between humans and silkworms. By reconstructing this relationship, he has developed the "COCOON ANATOMY" garments crafted from silkwaste. These innovative pieces represent a new production process that reimagines traditional methods.
The "COCOON ANATOMY" collection showcases our dedication to sustainable design and will be a prominent feature at DESIGNART TOKYO 2024. This revolutionary approach to textile design not only pays homage to the esteemed tradition of Japanese sericulture but also revitalizes it. Through the exhibition of these pioneering pieces, we aim to encourage our audience to recognize the profound link between culture and craftsmanship and envision a sustainable future for traditional arts.
HOJO AKIRA (Designer) Selected by Shun Kawakami / artless Inc.
This talented designer graduated from Kanazawa College of Art with a major in Product Design and currently works in Tokyo. They work both as in-house designers and freelancers, focusing on mass-produced products. Their design philosophy involves analyzing and improving mass production processes, emphasizing structure and joining methods.
The thought-provoking exhibition "What is the Essential Structure?" will explore the discomforts caused by the typical distortions of mass-produced items. The exhibition will encourage visitors to consider whether these distortions are inherent and what the true essence of a product is. At the core of this exploration are his uniquely designed "sofas," which embody his quest for answers and reflect his deep contemplation of structural integrity.
"Through his work, he aims to communicate these reflections to a broader audience, proposing new values and perspectives on product design.
Saki Takeshita (Designer) Selected by Akio Aoki/ MIRU DESIGN
This versatile designer, a Musashino Art University's Department of Industrial, Interior, and Craft Design graduate, has left a mark in various domains, from guitar effects to interior products. Based in Tokyo, she emphasizes the intricate relationship between objects, people, and spaces and brings a hands-on approach to her creative process.
She will unveil "Eeyo," a captivating exploration of material transformation. This work uses balsa wood, renowned as the world's lightest wood. By meticulously dyeing the wood and exposing it to nearly 200 degrees of hot air, she achieves a dynamic change in colour and a unique graphic representation. This intriguing method allows for a novel form of graphic processing, enhancing the natural grain and texture of the wood by varying the dyeing time and heat application to alter the wood's colours and patterns.
"Eeyo" can be applied to surfaces with uneven textures, curves, and three-dimensional objects, showcasing a new expressive technique in wood product design. By integrating this innovative process, she pushes the boundaries of traditional wood design and offers a fresh perspective on the interaction between materials and craftsmanship.
Graduated from the Department of Industrial, Interior and Craft Design at Musashino Art University. Engaged in a wide range of design work from guitar effects to interior products, creating and presenting work while based in Tokyo. With a focus on the relationship between objects, people, and spaces, she values the process of thinking and creating by hand while interacting with materials.
She will exhibit the work “Eeyo”, which involves dyeing balsa wood, known as the lightest wood in the world, and then exposing it to hot air at nearly 200 degrees, changing the color and creating a graphic representation. A mysterious phenomenon where, by varying the dyeing time and the application of heat, you can change the colors and patterns. The method allows graphic processing of surfaces with natural grain and texture, including those with uneven surfaces, curves, and of three-dimensional objects. This is a new expressive technique in wood product design.
Straft (Artist) Selected by OkisatoNagata / TIMELESS
Meet Straft, a creative craft unit founded by Tamaki Ishii and Kazuma Yamagami. Both are graduates of Tokyo Zokei University with degrees in Industrial Design. Ishii and Yamagami are based in Tokyo, where they use their skills to create innovative works that combine traditional styles with contemporary sensibilities.
Straft primarily works with rice straw, a material with deep cultural significance in Japan. Traditionally used in roofs, walls, and daily tools, rice straw is also a revered object of prayer. At DESIGNART TOKYO 2024, Straft will showcase its "NEST" exhibition, highlighting rice straw's spiritual and cultural significance beyond its practical uses.
Their signature piece, "TORI," exemplifies this ethos by expressing the inherent Japanese view of nature shaped by centuries of rice cultivation. "TORI" aims to capture the essence of spiritual richness and the harmony between humans and nature, a concept deeply rooted in Japanese tradition and increasingly relevant today.
Join us at DESIGNART TOKYO 2024 to experience Straft's "NEST" and witness how Ishii and Yamagami elevate rice straw from a mere resource to a powerful cultural and spiritual connection symbol. Through their work, Straft invites us to reflect on living in harmony with nature and rediscovering its spiritual richness.
Theme: Reframing: the Beginning of a Shift
Period: 10 days from Friday, October 18 to Sunday, October 27, 2024.
Area: Omotesando, Gaienmae, Harajuku, Shibuya, Roppongi, Hiroo, Ginza, Tokyo station area
Organizer: DESIGNART TOKYO COMMITTEE
Founders: Akio Aoki (MIRU DESIGN), Shun Kawakami (artless Inc.), Hiroshi Koike (NON- GRID), Okisato Nagata (TIMELESS), Astrid Klein & Mark Dytham (Klein Dytham architecture)
Official website: https://designart.jp/designarttokyo2024/?lang=en
DESIGNART TOKYO 2024 KEY VISUAL STAFF CREDIT
Photographer:Masaki Ogawa
Design & ArtDirection:artless
Direction : DESIGNART TOKYO COMMITTEE