studio visit: designboom tours takt project's tokyo office

described as a ‘design think and do tank’, takt project was founded in 2013 and is led by its principal, satoshi yoshiizumi. with a deep interest in connecting sensibilities with theories, yoshiizumi pursues and practices design as a ‘new intellect,’ which he says formulates a hypothesis that cannot be reached by logical thinking alone. the firm’s design theory is born from its self-driven research projects, which are developed alongside collaborations with a range of clients — from emerging startups to global brands.

designboom is in tokyo and visited takt project’s studio to see where the firm’s ideas are born. get an exclusive inside look at the studio below, and read our recent interview with satoshi yoshiizumi here.

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reminders of takt project’s past projects are dotted around the studio space with shelves showcasing a range of innovative designs. on display are items from ‘composition’, an experimental project that contemplates the difference between product and material. just as wood is whittled to make furniture, or clay altered to form utensils, ‘composition’ proves that the same can be done with electrical appliances. electrical components are treated as individual materials, which are held in space by a conductive resin.

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another work on display is ‘ice crystal’, a project developed alongside 3D printing company micron3DP. marking a ground-breaking development in 3D printed crystal technology, a series of candlestick holders and vases was drawn from the precise cutting and polishing techniques used by jewelry company swarovski. meanwhile, the ‘FES watch’ — a timepiece with an electronic paper display — is also on view.

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hanging within the office is a globe that was realized as part of the firm’s ‘glow ⇄ grow’ project. comprising a series of lights made from resin, the globe is made from liquid resin that has solidified and grown in overall size. ‘the resin growing like an ice block or a limestone cave gives various expressions to the lighting, and grows into a new shape from the emitted light,’ explains takt project.

‘glow ⇄ grow’: globe | read more on designboom here
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‘the ‘glow ⇄ grow’ project announced in milan in 2019 was a breakthrough in discovering a new possibility of a resin material,’ satoshi yoshiizumi told designboom in our recent interview. ‘however, I think it is also important that we do experiments with materials without any purpose. without having a specific purpose or tactic, you can discover various materials, play with them, and explore different possibilities. I think that we should try each of our thoughts and feelings as much as we can, and that big breakthroughs will occur at the point where the two intersect.’ read the interview in full here.

image © designboom