tokujin yoshioka for kartell: the invisibles

tokujin yoshioka for kartell: the invisibles portrait © designboom

japanese designer tokujin yoshioka has been named one of ‘the 100 most creative people in business’ 2010 by fast company, among three other designers and architects: kazuyo sejima, jean nouvel and bjarke ingels (BIG architects).

in fact, tokujin is one of the most prolific designers coming from japan. in the last two months alone, he has worked on an impressive number of new products and installation projects, which have been covered by most life-style media.

armchair from ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

‘the invisibles’ collection for kartell is a collaboration between the italian furniture manufacturer’s CEO claudio luti and the japanese designer. the project discussion began more than two years ago, when both were looking for a possibility to develop a new product line, made in acrylic, which inherited the essence of tokujin’s previous optical glass bench ‘waterfall’. the challenge was a difficult one, as technicians stated the use of acrylic of this thickness would be nearly impossible.

‘the invisibles’ collection’s transparent thickness eradicates the presence of the objects.

armchair from ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

 ‘I am drawn by things that do not have forms, but leave an emotional effect on people. at a glance, such material is invisible and its existence is erased. through the interaction with light, however, the form suddenly emerges. I am fascinated not only with such phenomena, but also elements that can stir and stimulate our imagination. I also like the idea of light, which is the form of design itself.‘ – tokujin yoshioka

see designboom’s coverage of ‘the invisibles’ collection before its official debut here.

installation view of ‘snowflake’ and ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

the overall installation which encompassed the collection at kartell flagship store during milan design week 2010 was ‘snowflake’. here, tokujin created ‘a serene world’ with numerous transparent prism sticks in plastic. the accumulation of these parts were tinged with white color giving the effect of snow.

sofa and side table from ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

side table from ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

table from ‘the invisibles’ collection, seen through the shop window image © designboom

bench from ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

‘snowflake’ installation surrounding ‘the invisibles’ collection image © designboom

view of ‘the invisibles’ collection surrounded by the ‘snowflake’ installation image © designboom

up close look at ‘snowflake’ installation image © designboom

view from outside the kartell flagship store in milan image © designboom

tokujin yoshioka portrait © designboom

designboom assisted tokujin while he was building-up his ‘snowflake’ installation. here is a fast-forwarded look at the set-up. video by designboom

designboom attended all of tokujin’s 2010 spring exhibitions, see: ‘memory’ chair for moroso, milan spectrum exhibition at the museum. beyondmuseum, seoul ‘stellar’ for swarovski crystal palace, milan.