Events

Photo: FUTAGAMI Bottle Opener / Kamoi Kakoshi Co., Ltd.

The Japan Foundation, New York and The New School’s Parsons School of Design, Design Studies and Industrial Design programs present “Japanese Design Today: Unique, Evolving, Borderless – with Hiroshi Kashiwagi and Yoshifumi Nakamura.” Hiroshi Kashiwagi, professor at Musashino Art University, and architect/ furniture designer Yoshifumi Nakamura will each discuss the evolution, distinguishing characteristics, and current state of Japanese design today.

For communication between cultures to occur, words and language become essential tools. Japanese design, however, has been proven capable of transcending language barriers and fostering communication and understanding between cultures. Throughout its history, Japan has enthusiastically embraced elements of other cultures while developing and retaining its own unique sense of design aesthetic, which today is recognized and appreciated throughout the world. But as Japanese society has transformed socially, geopolitically, and economically, so has Japanese design transformed to accommodate these changes. As the world gets smaller and access to information wider, people seek a more personal connection with the world around them, which has given way to a new era of Japanese design. Both Kashiwagi and Nakamura will tour Los Angeles and New York to delve into these topics and more.

A Q&A session will follow the presentations, moderated by Jilly Traganou, Associate Professor and Director of the Design Studies MA program, School of Art and Design History and Theory, Parsons School of Design.

Time & Place

6:30pm – 8:30pm Tuesday, September 8, 2015

The Bob and Sheila Hoerle Lecture Hall/Hoerle Lecture Hall – UL105
University Center
The New School
63 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10003

Lecturers

Hiroshi Kashiwagi

Professor at Musashino Art University, Tokyo. Born in Kobe in 1946. Majored in History of Modern Design as well as Design Criticism. Graduated with a degree in Design from Musashino Art University. Through his research in design, he has been attempting to spell out modern thought regarding aesthetic. Selected Exhibitions: Curated the Tanaka Ikko Retrospective Exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo in 2003. Curated the Fantaisies Cybernetiques exhibition, Maison de la culture du Japon a Paris, 2003-4. Selected Publications: Modann dezain hihan (Critique of the Modern Design) Iwanami Shoten, Tokyo, 2002.”Shikiri” no Bunkaron (Cultural Studies on “Boundary”) Kodansha, Tokyo, 2004. Tantei-shosetsu no Shitsunai (Interior of Detective Story) Hakusuisha, Tokyo, 2011. Dezain no Kyokasho (The Textbook on Design) Kodansha, Tokyo, 2011.

Yoshifumi Nakamura

Architect and furniture designer. Born in Chiba prefecture in 1948. Graduated with a degree in Architecture from Musashino Art University in 1972. After graduating from Musashino Art University and working as an architect for a several years, Nakamura entered the Woodworking Department of the Tokyo Metropolitan Shinagawa Vocational Training Center to learn wood craft and furniture making. After completing the program, Nakamura worked as a furniture designer at the office of architect Junzo Yoshimura for four years, then he established his own independent practice named the Lemming House which specializes in residential and furniture design. Nakamura has been a professor of the Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, College of Industrial Technology at Nihon University since 1999.

Organizers

This program is co-organized with the Japan Foundation, New York and The New School’s Parsons School of Design, Design Studies (MA, School of Art and Design History and Theory) & Industrial Design (MFA, School of Constructed Environments) Programs.

The Japan Foundation

The Japan Foundation is Japan’s public institution dedicated to sharing Japanese culture and language with people throughout the world. By presenting diverse aspects of Japanese culture, we create platforms of communication and understanding between the peoples of the world and Japan.

Parsons School of Design – The New School

Parsons School of Design – The New School is one of the leading institutions for art and design education in the world. Based in New York but active around the world, the school offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the full spectrum of art and design disciplines. Critical thinking and collaboration are at the heart of a Parsons education. Parsons graduates are leaders in their respective fields, with a shared commitment to creatively and critically addressing the complexities of life in the 21st century.

This event is supported by Delta Airlines.

For further information please contact: Tomomi Tanikawa tomomi_tanikawa@jfny.org / 212-489-0299 ext. 153

• Projects Organized by JFNY