The Original is a 'textbook' of design arguably like none before. It features some 150 masterpieces of product design from a landmark exhibition, now relisted in book form. The book is the creation of product designer Naoto Fukasawa, design journalist and writer Takahiro Tsuchida, and curator and writer Kaoru Tashiro.
The Original (the exhibition) captured the imaginations of visitors when it was held from March to June 2023 at 21_21 Design Sight in Tokyo. The contents of that exhibition – 150 examples of product design from the nineteenth century to today all chosen for their pioneering originality – are those that are showcased in this book. Each item is described from modern-day perspectives, while the chronological organisation of the book clearly lays out the evolution of diverse categories of the products, from furniture to lighting to tableware, toys and more, so as to offer readers a better understanding not only of the social backgrounds behind the works but of the history of product design itself.
Naoto Fukasawa established Naoto Fukasawa Design in 2003. He has won numerous awards, including the Isamu Noguchi Award in 2018. He holds the title of Royal Designer for Industry and is the director of 21_21 Design Sight, director of the Japan Folk Art Museum, and since 2024 he has been vice president of Tama Art University.
Takahiro Tsuchida was born in Hokkaido in 1970. Freelance since 2001, he contributes articles to specialized journals and other publications based on research in both Japan and abroad; primary areas of interest include furniture, interior design, and household products. He is a part-time lecturer at Tokyo University of the Arts and Kuwasawa Design School and editor of the design magazine Ilmm. Previous publications include Contemporary Design Interviews (Print & Build, 2021).
Kaoru Tashiro based herself in Milan after travelling from Japan to Italy on a scholarship from the Italian government. She published a Japanese translation of Project and Passion by Enzo Mari from Misuzu Shobo in 2009 and curated and coauthored the catalogue (Lixil Publishing) for the exhibition Giving Warmth to the Building Skin: The World of Gio Ponti, Father of Modern Italian Design in 2013. She returned to Japan in 2018 and has since been involved in a number of projects, including curating showings at Atelier Muji Ginza (Gallery 1) from 2019 to 2022 and co-organizing the Progettazione exhibition at Tokyo Midtown Design Hub in 2024. She has been a part-time lecturer at Tama Art University since 2021.
Seigensha Art Publishing, 232pp, 23cm × 15cm, illustrated paperback, 2024
