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Architect Kengo Kuma on the 'East Japan Project' and Tohoku's Reconstruction (3) | INTERVIEW Gallery

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April 2, 2015

Architect Kengo Kuma on the 'East Japan Project' and Tohoku's Reconstruction (3) | INTERVIEW Gallery

Kengo Kuma | East Japan Project

<strong>East Japan Project</strong>

Products born from the project "Ejp (East Japan Project)"

Products born from the project "Ejp (East Japan Project)"

<strong>East Japan Project</strong>

<strong>East Japan Project</strong> "Chidori" (Kengo Kuma & Associates / Fujisato Mokko, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture)<br>By combining 12 components to create a unit frame, and then freely connecting these units, furniture is produced that can be used in various ways according to individual lifestyles. This allows for furniture that can adapt to diverse uses and purposes, and by assembling one's own perfect piece, it enables a lifestyle with minimal waste in space and storage types.

<strong>East Japan Project</strong> "Chidori" (Kengo Kuma & Associates / Fujisato Mokko, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture)

<strong>East Japan Project</strong> Front: "NARUCO Kokeshi Light" (NOSIGNER / Matsuda Kobo, Naruko Onsen, Miyagi Prefecture)<br>A kokeshi-shaped LED light, handmade one by one using the "rokuro-biki" (potter's wheel) technique by kokeshi artisans in Naruko Onsen, Miyagi Prefecture. This nostalgic kokeshi seamlessly blends into modern living spaces and sensibilities, offering a pleasant wood texture and a comfortably sized head that fits snugly in the palm.<br>Center: "Kokeshi" (Erwan & Ronan Bouroullec / Fujisato Mokko, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture / Ushikuraan, Katta District, Miyagi Prefecture) For their product planning using Tohoku region crafts, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec chose kokeshi, wooden dolls that Tohoku artisans have been creating for a century using traditional methods. By giving a single joint to these otherwise static dolls, they have brought them to life.

<strong>East Japan Project</strong> "KOBOSHI" (Shiraishi Washi Kobo, Shiroishi City, Miyagi Prefecture / Seki Mikodo, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture / M&M Trading, Hamura City, Tokyo / Kengo Kuma & Associates)<br>This paper sake flask is crafted using washi paper from Masako Endo of Shiraishi Washi in Miyagi Prefecture and the papier-mâché technique known as "hariko" from Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture. While Daruma dolls are typically made with hariko, modern waterproofing has been applied to prevent leaks. It can be used as a sake flask or as a vase for a single flower.

<strong>East Japan Project</strong> "NARUCO Kokeshi Bottle Cap" (NOSIGNER / Matsuda Kobo, Naruko Onsen, Miyagi Prefecture)<br>A bottle cap shaped like a kokeshi's head, handmade one by one using the "rokuro-biki" (potter's wheel) technique by kokeshi artisans in Naruko Onsen, Miyagi Prefecture. This cap is used to replace the cap of a used plastic bottle, giving the bottle a new life. When attached, it makes the bottle look just like a kokeshi.

Kengo Kuma | East Japan Project

Kengo Kuma | East Japan Project

Kengo Kuma | East Japan Project

Kengo Kuma | East Japan Project

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Architect Kengo Kuma Discusses the "East Japan Project" and Reconstruction in Tohoku (Part 3) | INTERVIEW Gallery

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