Japanese Design since 1945
A Complete Sourcebook
Pollock, NaomiHarry N. Abrams · 2020
![Cover of Japanese Design since 1945](/src/image/o/publications/japanese-design-since-1945-a-complete-sourcebook/cover-w1024.jpg)
Japanese Design since 1945: A Complete Sourcebook is a comprehensive overview of Japanese design during the last eight decades that will appeal to artists, craftspeople, designers, and historians.
Details
- Title
- Japanese Design since 1945
- Subtitle
- A Complete Sourcebook
- Publication Date
- 2020
- Language
- English
- Media
- Page Count
- 448
- ISBN 13
- 9781419750540
- Author
- Pollock, Naomi
- Publisher
- Harry N. Abrams
Blurb
Design in Japan is deeply rooted in the country’s historic craft culture, profound understanding of materials and commitment to functionality. These qualities yield chairs, cups and other daily use items which are easy on the eye, comfortable in the hand and always do their job well. Even as mass manufacturing became widespread in the post-war period and cross-cultural exchanges began to take place with the West, Japan held fast to these core values and practices. This dedication has given rise to timeless objects of great beauty and utility as well as innovations in materials, form and technology. Far beyond design icons such as the Kikkoman Soy Sauce Bottle, Sori Yanagi’s Butterfly Stool, and the Sony Walkman® the products and objects created in Japan over the past seven decades serve to delight and draw admiration.
Author Naomi Pollock writes, “It doesn’t really matter what the medium is, whether plastic or metal, manufacturers treat the material with the same kind of reverence . . . the attention to detail and, above all, respect for the hand of the artisan, whether a traditional craftsperson or a factory worker. Even the mass-produced or computer-generated can be created with the pride and care of the handmade.”
In recent years, a new generation of designers, including Naoto Fukasawa, nendo, and Tokujin Yoshioka, have taken Japanese creativity into exciting new territory: some are eliminating objects entirely, others are reimagining what an object could be. Though Japan has developed some of the world’s most sophisticated robotic manufacturing complexes, many of its most appealing products are made by small factories and workshops whose artisans use their hands as much as machines.
This impressive volume is the most complete overview of Japanese design to date and its exquisite presentation is itself a beautiful example of Japanese design. Including profiles of over 70 creators, the book is based on the author’s interviews with designers, their colleagues and family members, as well as leading curators and critics. The profiles are accompanied by short takes on iconic products and essays on related topics by Japanese and Western design experts. Featuring hundreds of objects, this volume will become the definitive work on the subject for many years to come.
Table of Contents
- ForewordKanai, Masaaki6
- Introduction8
- The Design Titans16
- Junichi Arai17
- Kenya Hara32
- Yusaku Kamekura40
- Isamu Kenmochi48
- Toshiyuki Kita56
- Shiro Kuramata64
- Issey Miyake72
- MUJI80
- Taku Satoh88
- Ikko Tanaka96
- Sori Yanagi104
- Tokujin Yoshioka112
- Essay – From Awakening to Modernism: Design in Japan Before 1945Mori, Hitoshi121
- The Designers & Everyday Icons125
- Tables & Chairs126
- Keiji Ashizawa127
- DRILL DESIGN130
- Hisae Igarashi134
- Motomi Kawakami138
- Everyday Icons - The Butterfly Stool142
- Mikiya Kobayashi143
- Takeshi Nii146
- Oki Sato nendo150
- Everyday Icons - The Teiza Chair155
- Katsuhei Toyoguchi156
- Shigeru Uchida160
- Everyday Icons - The WINK Chair164
- Riki Watanabe165
- Essay – Japanese Space and Chair DesignPollock, Naomi169
- Food & Drink173
- Shin Azumi174
- Kimura Glass178
- The Polka-Dotted Teapot182
- Makoto Komatsu183
- GLOBAL Knives187
- Masahiro Mori188
- Shinichiro Ogata | Simplicity194
- Masanori Oji198
- Masatoshi Sakaegi202
- Moritaka Yoshita206
- Everyday Icons - The HS Stackable Tumbler210
- Mosuke Yoshitake | Hisanori Masuda211
- Essay – Scandinavian Design and the Rebirth of Japanese DesignShimazaki, Makoto217
- On & Off221
- Yoshio Akioka | КАК222
- GK Design Group226
- Everyday Icons – Akari Light Sculpture230
- Ichiro Iwasaki | Iwasaki Design Studio231
- Shosaku Kondo236
- Everyday Icons – The Midget Car239
- Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. | Panasonic Corporation240
- Everyday Icons – The Shinkansen Bullet Train244
- Fumie Shibata | Design Studio S245
- Sony248
- Everyday Icons – Aibo254
- Gen Terao | Balmuda255
- Yamaha Corporation260
- Essay – Japanese Car Design Since 1945Hamada, Shinji265
- Promotion & Packaging269
- Misa Awatsuji & Maki Awatsuji | AWATSUJI design270
- Everyday Icons – The Mitsukoshi Shopping Bag273
- Shigeo Fukuda274
- Takenobu Igarashi280
- Everyday Icons – The Kikkoman Soy Sauce Bottle284
- Kenji Itoh285
- Everyday Icons – Tokyo Metro Manner Posters289
- Shin Matsunaga290
- Kazumasa Nagai296
- Masayoshi Nakajo300
- Hiroshi Ohchi304
- Kashiwa Sato308
- Everyday Icons – The Onigiri Wrapper312
- Asao Tokolo313
- Tadanori Yokoo316
- Warp & Weft320
- Hiroshi Awatsuji321
- Everyday Icons - Tenugui325
- Akira Minagawa | minä perhonen326
- Makiko Minagawa330
- Osamu Mita334
- Everyday Icons – PLEATS PLEASE ISSEY MIYAKE338
- Eiji Miyamoto339
- Reiko Sudo342
- Everyday Icons – HEATTECH347
- Masaru Suzuki348
- Katsuhiji Wakisaka352
- Everyday Icons – Imabari Towel356
- Samiro Yunoki357
- Essay – 13 Meters of ClothMcQuaid, Matilda361
- Lifestyle & Leisure365
- Tomoko Azumi366
- Everyday Icons – Airvase369
- Shigeki Fujishiro370
- Noriko Hashida374
- Koji lyama378
- Everyday Icons – The Plastic Umbrella381
- Kazuo Kawasaki382
- Ryoichi Kobayashi | Studio GALA386
- Makoto Koizumi390
- Everyday Icons – Washlet395
- Masayuki Kurokawa396
- Nobuho Miya | Kamasada402
- Chiaki Murata | Metaphys406
- A-Z of Designers410
- Notes430
- Further Reading432
- About the Authors434
- Acknowledgments436
- Picture Credits437
- Index440