Aimed to foster tough creators in the fields of architecture, environment and design, the Department of Architecture and Building Design, Tohoku University, will launch an educational program “Sendai School of Design” in November 3. We are in charge of design works for its project logo, public relation graphics and website. [JH]
Akiyama will participate in an international conference “Interchange Symposium of East Asia Book 2010″, which will be held at Paju Bookcity, Korea, from the 4th to the 7th of November. Akiyama’s participation was requested by Kohei Sugiura, the graphic designer whom he admires the most. The other Japanese participant is Daijiro Ohara, to represent the young generation. During the event, a small exhibition will be held, in which the visitor can take a look at the designers’ works, as well as a symposium about the book design in East Asia and the participants’ presentations of their practice.
The countries in the region of East Asia share Chinese characters, yet each has its own culture. We hope this will be an opportunity, through exchanges with various designers from our neighboring countries, to reconsider potentials that the book form still has. [JH]
On the 30th of this month, an exhibition “Vibration of Entities” will open at NTT InterCommunication Center, Tokyo. With the words by Oskar Fischinger, “Everything in the world has a spirit”, the exhibition showcases works expressing “invisible powers” that can be interpreted broadly in relation to various vibrations in the form of energies contained by things and physical phenomena. This is definitely a must-see exhibition in this autumn in Tokyo. [JH]
Setouchi International Art Festival 2010, whose official guide book we designed, will close in a week time. Some members of our company went there this summer. The experience of spending such quiet time, waiting for the next ferry in a relaxed manner and encountering various artworks as walking along narrow pathway, as well as the fact that the festival drew a grand total of 600,000 visitors, gave an impact big enough to make us feel the possibility of “tourism-type art festivals”. Also, on the 17th, Sunday last week, a new museum called Teshima Art Museum opened on the island of Teshima, which has already been attracting many people. Moreover, the climate there is much milder now, after such a brutally hot summer that we experienced. So, just don’t miss it! [JH]
For a month since the middle August, we had had a graphic design student from Hacettepe University, Turkey, as an open desk intern. He practiced our design methods, mainly through helping logo designs for ongoing projects. [JH]
A Kiyosumi-shirakawa-based gallery hiromiyoshii has opened a new space “hiromiyoshii roppongi” in Roppongi. The aim is to show a variety of artistic practices of not only fine art but also fashion, design, architecture and so on. The opening exhibition “magnifique!” is curated by HIROMIX. Akiyama will curate an exhibition of design at this space in the next spring. [JH]
The website of Parasite Art Project, the ongoing art event held at book+cafe BOOOK, Sendai, has been on the net. Please take a look. [NI]
There are only 10 days to go until the opening of this year’s ZINE’S MATE. We will exhibit at 3331 in Akihabara under the name of edition nord, introducing “Field Sketch” by Tadashi Kawamata, which are newly-published photo books, with three existing publications. Also with personal zines created by related artists and our staff members, I can say that our booth is going to be a bustling one.
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Next to our booth will be an ambitious booth by about 30 students of Inter Media Art, Tokyo University of the Arts, called “Sentan Zines: unbound”. If you are interested in little presses, you should make a visit to this book fair. [JH]
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THE TOKYO ART BOOK FAIR 2010
@ 3331 Arts Chiyoda / Vacant
July 30: 11 am – 19 pm
July 31: 11 am – 19 pm
August 1: 11am – 18 pm
*Admission free
Akiyama will supervise the “Editorial Work” workshop in the Department of Inter Media Art, Tokyo University of the Arts. Following lectures for the students to study the history of book-making techniques and the physical and visual structure of the form of book, each participant will make a portfolio of their own works and a personal zine using accessible techniques. The resultant zines are scheduled to be exhibited in ZINE’S MATE. We look forward to the outcomes, especially because they should have skills and knowledges about a range of artistic media taught in the department. [AT]
I visited BOOOK for a business meeting yesterday, where I finally succeeded to get their melon breads that had been always sold out! I bought seven of them for everyone of my office, as their craze about this bread had already reached an extreme. We recommend you to make a reservation if you want to make a bulk purchase. [SA]
Our work has been featured in “Design&Typography” pages in the latest issue (August 2010) of the magazine “+DESIGNING“. With excerpted pages from the book “Arata Isozaki: 10 Casebook on Art and Architecture” published by TOTO Publishing in February this year, Akiyama’s ideas on book design and typography are introduced. Please take a look. [JH]
This year again, Akiyama gave a lecture at College of Engineering and Design, Shibaura Institute of Technology. He introduced architecture-related books among our works and some basic techniques of achitecture-related graphic design and editorial practice. [AT]
Organized by Tsurezuredan, a loosely gathered group of people who try to make Tohoku region more exciting, an event called “Precarious BOOOK Tour With Tsurezuredan: With Side Trips On The Way, Though” will be held. We do not know what will happen on the tour! This is an unofficial event by BOOK! BOOK! Sendai. The flyers that we designed are supposed to be handed out in the city. If you cannot find one, please contact Tsurezuredan.
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A tip: we hear that the melon breads sold at BOOOK are very tasty. Akiyama has visited BOOOK several times for meetings, but never had one as it was always sold out. Try one if you find it. [AT]
From July 31, Pedro Costa’s new movie “Ne change rien” will be shown at EUROSPACE, Shibuya. It is a documentary on singer Jeanne Balibar, the muse to many of contemporary french movie directors. It took him five years to shoot her and complete the movie, which is, according to the singer herself, more than a mere portrait of her. Enjoy the powerful and beautiful black and white images at the theater. He will show up at the theater on July 31 and August 1: please check the theater’s website for details.
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Before the movie starts, Balibar’s live concert will be held at SuperDeluxe, her retrospective at L’institut Franco-Japonais de Tokyo and Costa’s retrospective at EUROSPACE. Don’t miss these opportunities!
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We will soon publish a book of Costa’s idea sketches titled “Casa de Lava: Scrap Book”. The edition will be limited to 800. Don’t miss it! [AT]
We designed an official guide book for Setouchi International Art Festival 2010, which will be held from July 19. This is an ideal book to carry with you on your journey, through the artworks as gateways, to encounter the cultures and lives of the seven islands in the Seto Inland Sea as well as the Takamatsu city. It contains not only detailed information on how to get to each island, all the artworks and related events, but also enjoyable features such as picture-book style pages drawn by participating artists, unique diary pages with stickers, etc. We hope that this book helps you enjoy the islands’ beautiful sceneries and artworks. [AT]
The next exhibition for Parasite Art Project at book+cafe BOOOK will be of artist Masaru Shoji. He will show book objects and installations as a communication tool, exploring books’ possibility not for just reading.[AT]
A monograph of interior designer Naoki Iijima, titled “casuistica: Naoki Iijima Works 1985-2010″, has been published by Heibonsha. It is a boxed set of important works, essays, conversations and critical texts by him, who developed his career with the flow of the booming fashion industry through 70s and 80s and is now active in the front lines in the world. The white box contains nine small books in different formats, showing raw, primary documents of his works. This “style”, in the form of a collection of fragmented primary documents served with no ex-post analysis, not only makes it open to a variety of interpretation, but also proves that his creative process is still on its way. One of the nine books is bound with a sewing machine by our chiku-chiku laboratory, again. Please check it at bookshops. [AT]
“OPEN SPACE 2010” has opened at ICC, Tokyo. For its flyers and posters, we created experimental designs that had evolved from our “optexture” practice. The exhibition runs until February 27, 2011. Admission is free. We also designed a postcard for “emergencies! 014“, which runs until August 8. Run to ICC now! [AT]
A cafe and a bookshop in one, “book+cafe BOOOK” has opened on the Aobayama campus of Tohoku University. It is a comfortable space with patio tables facing a garden full of sunshine. The books at BOOOK are selected by the up-and-coming book director Yoshitaka Haba from BACH. We are in charge of its art direction and event planning. If you come to Sendai, please visit this spot, of which catchphrase is “Serving you a cup of coffee and encounters with new books ranging from engineering specialized books to romance novels”. I will post another entry soon, when its website opens. [AT]
Photographer Nao Tsuda has been selected for The Art Encouragement Prize for Freshman of Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan, for his work including the photo book “SMOKE LINE”, published by Akaaka Art Publishing, that we designed and his solo exhibition at Shiseido Gallery of which public relations and catalogue we also designed. Congratulations. Go purchase his photo books on this occasion! [AT]
Photographer Cozue Takagi has been selected for the 35th Kimura Ihei Award for her photo books “MID” and “GROUND”, both published by Akaaka Art Publishing, which we designed last year. Congratulations. Go purchase her photo books on this occasion! [AT]
The latest issue, no.9, of “Design No Hikidashi” has been published. A 6-page article at the back introduces the chiku-chiku laboratory, our hand working department. Check out photos of Tsutsumi operating her sewing machine on the front page of the special feature and standing with Japanese cooking apron at the working table. [SA]
Akiyama’s long interview appears in the latest issue, no.339, of “Idea” as the first installment of a new series “Transboundary Forms”, edited and designed by Yasuo Totsuka from the indie magazine “nu”. It is a long and interesting 16-page article, in which music is the key that two of them share. In the article, Akiyama also contributes a unique review of record jackets. Please take a look. [AT]
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Job offer!
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Age: any
Experience: InDesign and/ or QuarkXPress skills are favorable
Salary: hourly basis (to be discussed at interview)
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How to apply:
Please send your C.V. and portfolio (any form).
After screening application materials,
we will inform the date of their interviews to selected applicants.
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Work contents:
architecture-related books
design/art-related books
museum graphic
architectural signs
etc.
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Contact:
info@schtucco.com
Tel. 03-5366-8467 (Tsutsumi)
Only five days are left before closing of the exhibition “Souvenirs”. There have been many unofficial participants who added their souvenirs after the show started, which animated the show even more. Here we list their names as of today. Thank you very much for your participation. If you have not joined us, please do not hesitate as we still welcome more participants. Viewers are asked to take a photo of their favorite souvenir with a camera we hand and the chosen souvenirs are nominated for the Best Souvenir Prize. However, when it is too crowded, we may not have a chance to hand it to you. In that case, if you choose your favorite souvenir in the show, please give us an email at omyg@schtucco.com to vote. [AT]
An interview of our hand working team chiku-chiku laboratory will appear as special feature at the back of the book in the latest issue of the magazine “Design No Hikidashi” published by Graphic-Sha Publishing. The contents include stories on how we founded the laboratory and what is behind our works. You will see some of our completed books as well. Please take a look. [AT]
The exhibition “Souvenirs” has opened. In the opening party, we had various foods to do with the bear, such as bear-shaped chapaties and sweet potato cakes, salmon pastes, and so on; TAPiR even made a zinc mold for us to give foods a bear shape! The souvenirs shown are not only bear-related but also many other things, including fake Cheburashkas collected from various countries. We look forward to your visit. [AT]
This year again, our New Year’s card is on display in the exhibition “New Year Cards from 100 Designers vol. 5″ at the TAKEO CO., LTD. Gallery. Just like previous years, we recycled waste paper sheets left in our office. Please come visit the show to check it out. [AT]
Exhibition “Element: Cecil Balmond” will open tomorrow at Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery. It creates an opportunity for the viewer to explore the origin and development of the ideas of this structural designer, who works on a variety of projects. Utilizing rich and beautiful orders hidden in the nature, his works can be enjoyable not only by architecture lovers but also by general public.
We did typographies for this exhibition’s publicity materials and on-site signs. [AT]
Together with Gallery Niepce, we will co-organize an exhibition titled “Souvenirs” opening on January 25th (Mons)! It displays a variety of souvenirs collected on different journeys. Takehiko Nakafuji, photographer and owner of Gallery Niepce, brings along lovely souvenirs every time he goes on a trip for shooting photos. We also do the same thing, bringing cute companies every time we travel.
We conceived of the idea of organizing this exhibition when showing our souvenirs (and telling travel stories) to each other. It then grew out of circle of friends, and by now we have 19 people participating. As a guest exhibitor, renowned photographer Daido Mmoriyama will also join. Please come take a look at our treasures!
We have an opening reception from 6 to 8 pm on January 25th, for which all the participants will gather and our Shinjuku friend TAPiR will serve meals concerning this exhibition. Related events will be also held. For details, please check this page later again, as I will update the info little by little. During the show, I, Atsuko Tsutsumi, will be present to look after the gallery. [AT]
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Gallery Niepce + schtucco presents “Souvenirs” January 25th (Mon) to February 7th (Sun), 2010
1:00-8:00pm
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On your journeys, have you ever felt like, “oh I finally found this…” Everything on display in this show came into the exhibitor’s hands seemingly fatefully. Unique people active in different disciplines bring along their treasured collections of souvenirs and other things.
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[Opening reception]
January 25th (Mon) 6:00-8:00pm charge: 500 yen
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We are open for unofficial participants with interesting souvenirs.
For details, please contact schtucco via email at omyg@schtucco.com
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Exhibitors:
Shin Akiyama + Ayakao Tsutsumi [graphic designer / schtucco]
Takehiko Nakafuji + Toshiko Hashimoto + all the staff of Gallery Niepce [photographer / Gallery Niepce]
Koji Onaka + Yukiko Onaka [photographer / Gallery KAIDO]
Takashi Michikawa + Asako Suzuki [illustrator]
Toshiyuki Shinohara + Kanako Sugimori [Roonee 247Photography]
Tokuyuki Morioka [Morioka Shoten]
Ayako Yoneya + Kyoko Yaguchi + Eriko Mano [contemporary glass / nido]
Jin-ichi Murakami [editor]
Tamaki Yura [photographer]
Satoshi Fujita [Austin Record]
Kenji Ttakazawa [writer]
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guest exhibitor: Daido Moriyama [photographer]
This year again, we made our New Year’s Card with recycled waste paper sheets. As our cards last year were all lost by Japan Post, we decided to use Yamato Transport’s “Mail-bin” system, for which tracking function is available. In fact, it was not so easy as the material is fragile, but with a collaborative help from the Yamato driver we always work with, we finally succeeded in having them accept our cards. However, soon after that, we started receiving many calls from different branches saying that our cards were damaged, and that such thing would not be accepted from next time on. For us, it was not “damage”, though. It seems that our products again failed to adapt to society.
Some of you might have not received the card, as we could not send them at once (sorry). The ones that we sent later were put in handmade transparent bags, taking advice from Yamato. We will try another way next year. [AT]