Master craftsmen and international designers redefine the boundary between tradition and technology with Hideki Yoshimoto’s cultural project Craft x Tech at the London Design Festival 2024
On the occasion of the London Design Festival 2024, the Victoria Albert Museum will host the cultural project Craft x Tech, promoted by Hideki Yoshimoto and curated by Maria Cristina Didero. The initiative explores the encounter between traditional craftsmanship and modern technology by bringing together six craft districts in the Tohoku region of Japan with internationally renowned designers.
Yoshimoto’s project highlights how centuries-old craft techniques can be revived and reinterpreted through the use of contemporary technology while celebrating the great cultural exchange between the two worlds.
The designers participating in Craft x Tech at London Design Festival 2024
The designers exhibiting their work from September 13 to October 13, 2024 at the Prince Consort Gallery of the Victoria Albert Museum are Sabine Marcelis, Azusa Murakami, Alexander Groves (Studio SWINE), Ini Archibong, Yoichi Ochiai, Michael Young, and Hideki Yoshimoto.
Projects on show
Yōkan
Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis, in collaboration with Akita craftsmen, presents “Yōkan”, a series consisting of two tables and a wall-mounted piece. These objects, all lacquered in the elegant traditional Kawatsura Shikki’s style, explore the interplay between light and materiality.
Metropolis I
On the other hand, Azusa Murakami and Alexander Groves reinterpret the Sendai Tansu, originally crafted as a samurai or merchant chest, with graphic motifs and geometry inspired by 1960’s Metabolism.
Artifact #VII
Designer Ini Archibong has worked with Aomori craftsmen to create a sound sculpture, Artifact #VII, which combines cultural heritage and futuristic design.
Null-Beni-An / Nouvelle Néant
Japanese artist Yoichi Ochiai explores the Oitama Tsumugi textile tradition of Yamagata Prefecture with Null-Beni-An / Nouvelle Néant, a tea room made of silk and a tensegrity structure.
Blossom Links
Hong Kong-based designer Michael Young has revived the ancient iron processing techniques of the Nambu-Tekki craftsmen in Iwate Prefecture with the modular work Blossom Links. This collection of tables and wall-mounted pieces is made with identical iron modules adorned with cherry blossom and geometric patterns, made with 3D printing technology.
Rain
Lastly, Hideki Yoshimoto has designed Rain, a floor lamp that combines traditional ceramics with modern materials, incorporating the oldest lacquering technique in Tohoku.
