Kanto Journal 3 Volume 2 2017

ANGLES
Cultural barriers in the realm of design are blurring at a rapid
pace. What quality about the designs of your furniture would you
say is singularly Japanese?
Our products are simple, but not for simplicity’s sake! Inspired from
the challenge of maximizing the shortage of resources—materials and
professional skills—stemming from the earthquake, our furniture is
utilitarian, yet functional and attractive as a result of the design and
fabrication process. The designs are not only rooted in meeting real
human needs, but also have a unified aesthetic because they all share the
same language of materiality and creation.
What is the Lab's design credo?
When we work with designers, we first tell them what kind
of materials, tools, as well as production processes we possess.
While we have slowly upgraded our skills and machines, the basic design
philosophy has not changed—by only having constraints imposed in
terms of materials, sizes and techniques can we truly arrive at something
that is functional and simple in substance and not name only.
Above: The Kobo St-Table used at the
Alpha Beta Coffee Club in Jiyugaoka,
Tokyo. Photography by Michael Holmes
Opposite page: Ishinomaki Benches in
front of the Blue Bottle Coffee store in
Nakameguro, Tokyo. Photography by
by Takumi Ota
What would you say is the most important insight that you gained
in starting this initiative?
What “the devil is in the details” really meant is what I have come
to understand more since Ishinomaki Laboratory started. My eyes are
now more drawn to places and details that are normally unseen or left
hidden. For example, I will stop by any made object that catches my eye
and then figure out the structure and how it is assembled.
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