Ikko Tanaka was a Japanese graphic designer. Tanaka is widely recognized for his prolific body of interdisciplinary work, which includes graphic identity and visual matter for brands and corporations including Seibu Department Stores, Mazda, Issey Miyake, Hanae Mori, and Expo 85. He is credited with developing the foundational graphic identity for lifestyle brand Muji, emphasizing the “no brand” quality of their products through unadorned, charming line drawings paired with straightforward slogans. His use of bold, polychromatic geometries and his harnessing of the dynamic visual potential of typography are undergirded by a sensitivity towards traditional Japanese aesthetics. Though keenly sensitive to historical precedents and established conventions, Tanaka nevertheless maintained a degree of playfulness in his work, manipulating color, scale, and form to reconfigure familiar iconographies into fresh and accessible visual representations. Tanaka is also widely recognized for his posters designs for Noh productions and other performances and exhibitions staged in Japan and beyond. He was active in realms of typography, exhibition design, and book design as well, and his publication Japan Style was released in 1980 alongside the Victoria and Albert Museum exhibition of the same name. As a leading figure in postwar Japanese design, Tanaka is also credited with playing a role in the professionalization and expansion of the discipline.
Authors
Tanaka Ikko
田中一光
다른 사람들
-
Gail Greet Hannah is a writer specializing in design and marketing. She was a friend of Rowena Reed Kostellow and worked with her to publish her teaching method. She lives in Cold Spring Harbor.
-
Yang Ye-kyu
Graduated from Dongduk Women’s University College of Arts, Department of Visual Design and its graduate school, and completed the web design course at Fashion Institute Technology (F.I.T) in New York, USA. Worked as a designer at the advertising production team of Samhee Planning Co., Ltd., the predecessor of advertising agency Hancom Co., Ltd., and taught CI and computer graphics at Dongduk Women’s University Department of Visual Design. Currently working as the head of the design … -
Kim Tae-hwa
After majoring in video animation, he worked as a designer at SBS Digital News Lab’s Operational Content Team, overseeing the design of various brands and contents such as ‘SUBUSU NEWS’ and ‘MMTG’. Since 2021, he has also been designing eco-friendly commerce brand 175Planet. -
Akasegawa Genpei
Akasegawa Genpei was a pseudonym of Japanese artist Akasegawa Katsuhiko (赤瀬川克彦), born March 27, 1937 in Yokohama. He used another pseudonym, Otsuji Katsuhiko (尾辻克彦), for literary works. A member of the influential artist groups Neo-Dada Organizers and Hi-Red Center, Akasegawa went on to maintain a multi-disciplinary practice throughout his career as an individual artist. In 1986, Akasegawa and his collaborators, Terunobu Fujimori and Shinbo Minami, to announce the formation of a new group: … -
Kelly M. Choi
Studied visual design and typography at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and The Basel School of Design. Currently runs the brand Once Type, exploring the visual potential of letters. -
LG Electronics Brand Book Production Center
Since 1958, LG Electronics has been committed to the belief that everyone deserves a better life. This philosophy extends beyond products and services, driving human-centered innovation and a focus on joy in everything they do. The LG Electronics Brand Book Production Center has gathered previously untold stories from the employees of LG Electronics, preserving their experiences in a carefully crafted book. Through these stories, the brand aims to share with a broader audience the message of … -
Doeun Park
She is a PhD candidate in the HCI Lab at Yonsei University. She is currently collaborating with HAII, a company specializing in digital therapeutics, to develop a voice agent that enhances executive functions in children with ADHD. Her research focuses on how children form relationships with computers and the resulting behaviors and emotions that emerge during this process. She has published in journals such as the International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction and has presented at … -
Oh Seok-hui
Oh Seok-hui is an interdisciplinary engineer exploring metaverses, extended reality, user experience design, generative AI, games, and animation. He is currently a PD at the Cultural Contents Technology Promotion Center of the Korea Creative Content Agency, leading research and development projects and project planning in the field of cultural contents. As a professor of computer science at Gachon University, he has conducted research and development on augmented reality (AR), virtual reality … -
Kim Lee-hong
He is currently an assistant professor at Hongik University Graduate School of Architecture and Urbanism and a principal at Leehong Kim Architects. After graduating from Yonsei University’s School of Architecture and Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design (GSD), he practiced at Samwoo Architects and Steven Hall Architects for seven years. Since opening Leehong Kim Architects, he has been working on various projects between Korea and the United States. He participated in the … -
Doi Akifumi
Born in Hiroshima in 1957. Owner of Tom’s Box. Handles picture books and books related to picture books. He has been involved in the planning and editing of over 300 picture books to date, including the Forest of Images series (Holp Shuppan) and Neko no Sweater (Oikawa Kenji, Takeuchi Mayuko). He also organizes the workshop Atosaki Juku with Akira Ono, which aims to nurture picture book authors. -
Naka Toshiharu
Born in Kyoto Prefecture in 1976. Graduated from the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Tokyo in 1999, and completed a Master’s degree in Architecture at the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo in 2001. After working at Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, he established Naka Architecture Studio in 2009. Served as a design assistant at Y-GSA, Yokohama National University Graduate School from 2009 to 2011. Received the Young Architect … -
Im Nam-sook
Graduated from the Department of Ceramics at Ewha Womans University. She majored in Graphic Design at Braunschweig University of Art (Braunschweig Kunsthochschule) in Germany and earned a Ph.D. in Design Philosophy from the same institution. Currently, she is a professor in the Department of Art Education at Daegu National University of Education.