DesignArt Tokyo 2021: "CHANCE!"

DESIGNART Tokyo is one of Japan's largest art and design festivals, which brings together various genres of art, design, interior design, and fashion from around the world. In a time when new ideas, creative thinking, and actions are particularly needed, these art and design pieces contribute with their creative value in the new era. With this year's theme of "CHANCE!", the festival incorporates 300 artists and designers who showcase a diverse range of timeless works. From 22 to 31 October, Tokyo, one of the world's most culturally diverse cities, is filled with contemporary creations by these talented artists and designers. 

While the pandemic poses challenges and limits to opportunities for creators and collects to meet, DESIGNART Tokyo, together with the Crowdfunding service "ubgoe", will hold "KURADASHI", an exhibition where visitors are able to see and purchase valuable works by creators that are not yet available on the market. The rare selection of works that will be exhibited and sold consists of prototypes and treasured works that were previously stored in their ateliers for various reasons that never reached the market. This is a creative market with a new concept where works that are not usually available are delivered to users who share their values. 

Among these works is 'Metamorphosis Garden' by Kohei Nawa - an installation that conveys the theme of life, matter, and a world in which ambiguous entities coexist on the boundary between the two. Expressing the emergence of a new narrative out of chaos, the installation builds upon Nawa's 'Biota (Fauna/Flora)' installation (2013) on Inujima island in the Seto Inland Sea. Ether and Trans-Deer emerge as symbols of life from irregularly shaped islands and droplets in a group of sculptures covered with alumina and microbeads floating in the atrium space. 

Maison Perrier-Jouët continues its years of collaboration with Austrian designer duo mischer’traxler, unveiling their new artwork "I am Nature" premiering in Japan. "IamNature" is the first artwork where mischer’traxler used digital technology. This work invites us to reconsider how humans coexist with nature through motifs of the natural environment. What started as hand-drawn sketches turned into watercolour works, and these were eventually developed into vibrant digital works. It embodies the respective towards biodiversity that both Perrier-Jouët and mischer’traxler share. 

The pandemic has impacted every aspect of our lives, from how we live and learn to how we work. Steelcase, an insight lead industry-leading office furniture manufacturer, has launched the "Steelcase Work Tents Collection" as a versatile privacy solution. 'The Work Tent', which is designed in collaboration with a world-class tent designer and inspired by the iconic Gherkin Building in London, will be showcased for the first time in Japan. Recreationaltents provide safety and a haven of security in uncertain outdoor conditions, and now Work Tents provide people in the office with the same shelter and protection they crave.

TSUYAMA Furniture is a furniture collection made from Japanese cedar and cypress. In Tsuyama City, located in the mountainous area of ​​Okayama Prefecture, is where this cypress and cedar are produced and where the wood industry has been concentrated for a long time. TSUYAMA Furniture utilizes the technological capabilities of each company and the locally produced cypress and cedar.

TORY BURCH x Kayoko Kimura features the collaboration of Tory Burch Ginza Store, an American luxury brand from New York, and Japanese artist Kayoko Kimura. Their exhibition questions life and the world through Kimura's soft and delicate paintings. In addition to the large artworks that symbolise Kimura's worldview, she is also exhibiting new works inspired by Tory Burch. 

Exhibition Dates: 22 - 31 October 2021
Locations: Omotesando, Gaien-mae, Harajuku, Meiji-jingu-mae, Shibuya, Ebisu, Daikanyama, Roppongi, Ginza
Find out more about DESIGNART Tokyo 2021 here.