Ikko Tanaka was a Japanese graphic designer. Tanaka is widely recognized for his prolific body of interdisciplinary work, which includes graphic identity and visual matter for brands and corporations including Seibu Department Stores, Mazda, Issey Miyake, Hanae Mori, and Expo 85. He is credited with developing the foundational graphic identity for lifestyle brand Muji, emphasizing the “no brand” quality of their products through unadorned, charming line drawings paired with straightforward slogans. His use of bold, polychromatic geometries and his harnessing of the dynamic visual potential of typography are undergirded by a sensitivity towards traditional Japanese aesthetics. Though keenly sensitive to historical precedents and established conventions, Tanaka nevertheless maintained a degree of playfulness in his work, manipulating color, scale, and form to reconfigure familiar iconographies into fresh and accessible visual representations. Tanaka is also widely recognized for his posters designs for Noh productions and other performances and exhibitions staged in Japan and beyond. He was active in realms of typography, exhibition design, and book design as well, and his publication Japan Style was released in 1980 alongside the Victoria and Albert Museum exhibition of the same name. As a leading figure in postwar Japanese design, Tanaka is also credited with playing a role in the professionalization and expansion of the discipline.
Authors
Tanaka Ikko
田中一光
다른 사람들
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Graduated from Waseda University, Department of Architecture. After working at several design offices, he founded a0100z space design with his life partner in 2009. Currently, he is building a series of houses called ‘House with a Worn Threshold’ and ‘Together’, and runs Jeongchu Seodang in Yongsu Village, Yongin, where he talks about humanities and gives a lecture on humanities architecture called ‘House is Meaning’.
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Ahn Graphics
Ahngraphics is a Korean design publishing company and company founded by visual designer Ahn Sang-soo on February 8, 1985. It was converted to a stock company in 1990 and has grown into a comprehensive design company covering four sectors: design, digital, media, and publishing. It was the first design company to introduce DTP into practice, and contributed to the development of Korean graphic design through high-quality editorial design centered on letters. It celebrated its 30th anniversary … -
Nat McCully
Nat McCully worked at Claris Corporation and Apple Computer in Japanese product development, specializing in text layout, from 1991 to 1998. He then joined Adobe Systems as the lead engineer for the Japanese version of InDesign, implementing text composition and Japanese publishing workflow features. He has worked on Flash, AIR, RMSDK, and advised the teams on Photoshop, Illustrator, and Adobe Text Engine (ATE). He now works with the Spark and the XD teams on worldwide extensibility and … -
라슬로 모호이너지
20세기 디자인 교육의 가장 혁명적인 인물로, 바우하우스에서 교수로 재직하며 예술과 기술의 통합을 주도했다. 회화 중심의 교육에 사진, 영화, 타이포그래피 등 신매체를 도입하며 인간 지각의 확장을 탐구했다. “예술과 기술—새로운 통합(Kunst und Technik — eine neue Einheit)”이라는 구호 아래 바우하우스를 단순한 예술학교를 넘어 산업사회와 조화하는 디자인 교육기관으로 이끌었다. 1895년 오스트리아-헝가리 제국에서 태어났고, 제1차 세계대전 시기에 청년기를 보냈다. 전후 서구에서 일어난 격렬한 문화적 격동과 모더니즘 속에서 포토그램, 포토몽타주, 영화, 키네틱 조각 등을 활용해 새로운 시각 실험을 펼쳤다. 발터 그로피우스, 마르셀 브로이어 등 동시대 예술가와 활발하게 협업했으며, 알바르 알토, 요제프 알베르스, 헤르베르트 바이어 등 많은 예술가에게 영향을 미쳤다. 예술평론가 피터 셸달은 그를 “끊임없이 실험하는 작가”라고 불렀다. 1937년 발터 … -
Naka Toshiharu
Born in Kyoto Prefecture in 1976. Graduated from the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Tokyo in 1999, and completed a Master’s degree in Architecture at the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo in 2001. After working at Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, he established Naka Architecture Studio in 2009. Served as a design assistant at Y-GSA, Yokohama National University Graduate School from 2009 to 2011. Received the Young Architect … -
Joachim Müller-Lancé
He graduated with honors from the Basel School of Design in Switzerland and studied art at the Cooper Union in New York, USA. He worked as a senior designer for The Understanding Business and Barclays Global Investors, and organized cultural exhibitions and publications for the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. In 1993, he won a gold medal at the Morisawa Typeface Competition in Lancecerro. He is currently the head of Kame Design Studio, where he focuses on graphic design, type design, and … -
Byunggeol Min
He is a graphic designer. After graduating from the Department of Visual Communication Design at Hongik University, he worked as a designer at Angraphics. He then went on to study “typography using mathematical algorithms” in the graduate program of Visual Communication Design at Musashino Art University. Upon returning to Seoul, he served as a design director at Noon Design and took part in Jindallae’s collective activities, undertaking numerous projects that derive various forms from fixed … -
Kim Young-bae
He majored in visual design at Dankook University and the Department of Applied Arts at the same graduate school. He served as the editor-in-chief of the monthly Pop Sign , Sign Culture , and Sign Korea , and as the principal of the Sign Design School at the Sign Culture Institute of Hope Production Center, he conducted “Sign Design School” educational programs in Gyeonggi-do, Chungnam-do, and Jeonnam-do. He has served as a jury member for outdoor advertisements in local governments and is … -
Choi Bum
Design critic. Graduated from the Department of Industrial Design and the Department of Aesthetics at Hongik University. Served as the editor-in-chief of the monthly magazine Design and as the editor of the design criticism journal Design Critique . Focused on critically analyzing Korean society and culture through the lens of design. Authored several books, including: A View on Korean Design , Where is Korean Design Heading? , Korean Design: Beyond the Myth , If I Had Read That Book in Those … -
Choi Sung-min
Choi Sulki and Choi Sung-min are graphic designers working around Seoul, South Korea. They met at Yale University where they both earned their MFA degrees. After working as researchers at the Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht, they returned to Korea in 2005 to start their own practice. Since then, they have created graphic identities, promotional materials, publications and websites for many cultural institutions and individuals. From 2010 until 2013, they worked as graphic designers of the … -
Chung Kyung-won
A leading authority in design management, he has served as the President of the Korea Institute of Design Promotion (KIDP) and the Chief of Design Seoul Headquarters for the Seoul Metropolitan Government. He studied Industrial Design at Seoul National University and its graduate school, earned a Master’s degree in Industrial Design from Syracuse University in the United States, and a Ph.D. in Design Strategy from Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom. He debuted as a designer … -
Choi Hyuk-kyoo
A member of the steering committee at the Center for Cultural Society and a former activist with the Cultural Action. Currently works in the field of cultural education. Maintains a steady interest in technology, culture, and labor while studying cultural theory and social sciences.