Kenya Hara Lecture: Nothing, Yet Everything

Kenya Hara is Japan’s most respected thinker and prolific designer. As the Art Director in communication and Board Member of MUJI, Kenya Hara is synonymous with its acclaimed art direction. He is devoted to developing design deeply rooted in Japanese culture and philosophy.

Come spend a day with Kenya Hara and all his greatest works: HAPTIC, SENSEWARE, MUJI, and Emptiness, in his inaugural lecture in Singapore.

Venue : The Singapore Airlines Theatre, LASALLE College of the Arts, 1 McNally Street, Singapore 187940

Date : 12 Nov 2009

Time : 9am

Ticketing by SISTIC

Info at www.autumnschool.asia

Contact at contact@autumnschool.asia



I'd say, save the date, book the event, and plan your travel dates early. Drop everything else. This is MUJI speaking.

And pssst.., there'll be book signing by Kenya Hara. Books by Kenya Hara: Designing Design, Haptic, White, MUJI etc, will be on sale on site at special promotional prices in conjunction with this Lecture. ;-)



Thanks, Adrian!

Playing Princess for a Day in Japan

It sure sounds like a smart(!) business to me. Banking on fun. Please read the complete story here.

konnichiWHOA! photography exhibition

It's a 2-week exhibition with over 200 photographs of Japan by 24 final-year students from Temasek Polytechnic. Here's a short story about the exhibition.


Individualism is the common thread that binds this exhibition, which offers multiple perspectives on one subject – Japan, seen through the lens of these students, many of whom are first-time visitors to the country. The kaleidoscopic exhibition captures the rich cultures of Japan through the eyes of these youth, its people, architecture in over 200 photographic works. Visitors to the gallery would be able to see their creative interpretation of Japan and their varied photography styles reflected in their photography works and video installations.

You can view some of the photographs here. This is my top fave so far. *Not a common sight in Japan, I hope. ;-)*

KonnichiWHOA! will start from Friday, 18 July 2009 to Friday, 1 August 2008, Monday to Saturday, 11am to 8pm, Sunday, 1pm to 6pm at 2902 Gallery, 11 Mount Sophia, Block B, #B2-09, Singapore. Be there! I know I would. :)



Thanks, Pepper!

Links for you..

As promised, here are some links for you. Since I haven't been reading blogs the past few weeks, below links are taken either from my emails, or my bookmarks. If you need more good reads, you could rely on my right sidebar links. (look ----->) :)


Young Illustrator Awards 2008

Claudia of Illustrative 2008 told me about the Young Illustrators Award 2008 currently accepting artworks from talented illustrators, animators, and book artists worldwide(!). 20 finalists will be shortlisted to participate at the Illustrative 2008 exhibition this October in Zürich. Wanna know what the dateline and the top prize are? Click here to find out more.


Baden Baden, Japan

Baden Baden is another great Japanese design shop. I have to say they have a really good eye in selecting their products. I love most of them. :) But if I had to choose, Pendulum lighting is definitely(!) my top favorite.


textile+music, Japan

textile+music was founded in 2003 by textile designer Yuji Muzita. I learnt about textile+music from Baden Baden. Above are some of his wonderful work. You should see the rest of them here.


More Singapore-based design blogs

Here are the latest Singapore-based design blogs added to my links recently, Trend Insights and DesignHeir. Trend Insights is run by a team of professionals from advertising/design industries, and DesignHeir is run by D. Heir, a Creative Director, who happens to be my former classmate in fabric printing course. :) Folks, please join me to welcome them.


Take care now, I'll be back in two weeks.

OTTAIPNU, Japan

Amongst the Japanese home textile brands I've known so far, OTTAIPNU is my top favorite. It seems to be run by the same people of UNPIATTO. Searches on either one led to the same products, which are textile works by Masaru Suzuki, who is also a Textile Design part-time lecturer at Tokyo Zokei University.



All pictures above were taken from its old blog. You could find their new textile blog here.

QUARTER REPORT, Japan

Another beauuuuutiful collection from Japan, QUARTER REPORT. My top favorites are their oh-so-innovative draperies and that "houses" window decals. But those are not the only things they offer, you could also find baby bibs, slippers, rugs, or even mugs on their product collections.


And you. must. see. their production process slideshows, which can be found under Story, like these two snapshots shown above. Breathtaking. Currently QUARTER REPORT is open for wholesale trade only.

kata kata, Japan

I've been obsessed with Japanese textiles lately, so here's one from Japan, kata kata. I couldn't tell you much since I can't read/write Japanese, but I do adore their pattern designs, which are designed by Chie Takai and Takeshi Matsunaga. They produce bags, coasters, cushion covers, book covers and fabric panels out of these designs.


Here are some pictures from their website and blog. It looks like one charming shop with wonderful patterns, doesn't it? I wish I could visit it and perhaps, get one of those bags. :)


Happy Hearts Day!! We're are going for Indian cuisine tonight. Not exactly the kind of food you'd think of on Valentine's Day, but hey... we looove it! :) You have a great evening, too, okay? xox

more mina perhonen?

Seeing Lena's and Abigail's posts on mina perhonen reminded me of the YouTube video clip I bookmarked sometime last year. It's an interview with Akira Minagawa, the designer, on his mina perhonen collection, conducted by NHK.





Too bad it's only in Japanese and no English subtitles given. The 9min20sec clip is not the complete version of the TV interview, but nonetheless, it's always inspiring to see his work. For those who understand Japanese, please feel free to leave comments and fill in some blanks for us. Thanks beforehand! :) Please enjoy!

New from BG SHOP, Japan

I blogged about BG SHOP before, but only on their recent newsletter that I found out about their new products, like Sori Yanagi Fabrics, Plywood Wine Rack, or that clever display pockets, or those adorable cookie cutters (not shown here). And not to be missed, their gorgeous retro pouches. Click here to see them all. Enjoy!

cocca, Japan

cocca is a japanese shop selling printed textiles and crafts materials. But those are not the only things you'd find at cocca. They stock some chairs, pendant lamps and accessories holder & coat racks, too. And that holland fabric is my top fave. Love the embroidery.

IAMACREATIVEPERSON

Singapore Design Festival has just started on Nov 28, and IAMACREATIVEPERSON is taking part of the event. It's a new design initiative to promote creative thinking and action through business, art, design and media to the people of Singapore.



IAMACREATIVEPERSON is showcasing selected famous product ideas and items of Japanese top creators and artists at the Old Supreme Court, Singapore, from Nov 28 till Dec 8, 2007. Plus, there's a design market where you can purchase products from local artists/designers, or the japanese products exhibited. Click on Designers to see the full list of the exhibitors. Above are some shots taken from their photo gallery. A design conference, when DESIGN meets market, will also be held on Dec 3, 2007 at the Victoria Theatre, Singapore. Click here for more details on the speakers.

I have to say IAMACREATIVEPERSON is one of the must-visits of this year's festival. Must, must! Check out the rest of the festival excitement here. Enjoy!

chair-chair, Japan

chair-chair is a Japanese shop selling new and vintage furniture, cameras, toys, and soft furnishings. I stumbled upon its blog while searching for Sdi Fantasia. I had fun browsing through all the pictures at chair-chair blog, where the seller displays the items in a hilarious way (note the toys!). Pretty good sense of humor, don't you think?



And I just had to post this picture below. I think it's a perfect(!) shot for a retro shop, like chair-chair.



oh, btw, don't miss the chair-chair original bikini pad! love it!

Sdi Fantasia, Japan

Sdi Fantasia is a children furniture manufacturing company based in Japan, founded by designer Toshimitsu Sasaki. A glance on their products page, you'll realize that Sdi Fantasia must be known for their innovative designs.




New Bambini (first row pics) serves a dual purpose, as a high chair or as a rocking horse. Cart (bottom right) is a wooden toy vehicle with adjustable height and adjustable steering wheel. And don't you just love that mini Carota chair? :)

favoritsaker.se

I've seen favoritsaker.se products featured on swedish magazines and around the blogland before. I remember seeing it over at Roomservice and Hemfeber before, so it's a nice surprise to see its newsletter in my mail this time.



You could find lovely items from Rice, Sandra Isaksson, Lotta Kühlhorn, koziol, and more at favoritsaker.se. And they also have this Alice plate I bought in Finland. I know the site is in Swedish, but it's no harm to have some visual treats, right? :)


btw, these koziol fruit/dessert tiered servers are so popular! Really. I've seen them too many times on japanese books and scandinavian magazines. And fyi, koziol will be at the Takashimaya Atrium Hall starting this weekend during the "best of brands" Germany promotion. ;-) Happy browsing!


Thanks, favoritsaker.se!