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
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An architect who graduated from the Graduate School of Architecture at Tsinghua University (清華大學) and earned a Ph.D. in Urban Design from Tongji University(同济大学) and a Ph.D. in Geography from Peking University(北京大学). Currently, he serves as the Dean of the School of Architecture and Art at Central South University and as a professor at Peking University. He is the Vice President of the Hunan Provincial Architectural Society and the Hunan Provincial Architectural Artists Association, as well as …
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Park Hee-won
After studying Living Design and Journalism & Broadcasting at Yonsei University , they worked as a product development MD. Driven by a desire to shape and engage with stories, they transitioned into the world of translation. After completing the publishing translation program at Gulbab Academy , they began working as a translator affiliated with Barun Translation . Their translated works include Vinyl , Ace , The Outlaw Ocean , and A Bookshelf of One’s Own . -
Kwak Yung-bin
He is an art critic and visiting professor at Yonsei University’s Graduate School of Communication, and holds a PhD from the University of Iowa, USA, with a “The origin of Korean Trauerspiel”. In 2015, he was awarded the inaugural SeMA-Hana Art Criticism Award, the first national art criticism award established by the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA). His recent publications include “The Blind Past and the Eternal Return of Global Civil War: Difference and Repetition in Omer Fasth … -
Park Chang-hyun
Based in Seoul, this architect designs architecture, spaces, and furniture. In 2013, they founded AROUND Architects, focusing on the social perspective of architecture. Their work spatially proposes connections between people in shared spaces and between buildings to foster neighborhood connectivity. Recent completed projects include the Third Place series of multi-family housing and the Jeongbalsan House. From 2002 to 2018, they taught architecture at Kyonggi University and Korea University. … -
Choon Choi
Choon Choi is a professor in the Department of Architecture at Seoul National University, leading the Architectural Culture Research Lab. His work focuses on reinterpreting and revitalizing the cultural values embedded in architectural heritage through restoration and regeneration projects. He has collaborated with curators to design exhibition spaces for events such as the “Gwangju Biennale” and the “Seoul Media City Biennale”. In partnership with artists, he worked on … -
문현선
이화여자대학교에서 사학과 중어중문학을 복수 전공하고 동 대학원에서 중국 신화로 석사, 중국 문화로 박사 학위를 받았다. 현재 대학에서 중국문학과 중국 문화, 문화 콘텐츠 관련 강의를 맡고 있으며, 이야기공작소 파수의 캐릭터 프로파일러이자 인문 연구 모임 문이원의 상임연구원으로 활동하고 있다. 저서로 『무협』, 공저로 『종로미각』 『소인경』 등이 있고, 옮긴 책으로 『끝에서 두 번째 여자친구』 『다리 위 미친 여자』 『행위예술』 『열여덟, 소녀를 내게 줘』 『꽃 피는 시절』 등 중국 및 대만의 현대문학, 다수의 인문서가 있다. -
Kim Won-young
She worked as a lawyer at the National Human Rights Commission of Korea and Law Firm Deoksu. Since 2013, she has been involved in performing arts research and creation, and since 2019, she has been directly participating in performances as a choreographer, playwright, and dancer. She has published books and papers dealing with disability and the relationship between human rights, art, and technology. She wrote books including Defense for the Disqualified (2018) and Becoming a Cyborg (2021), and … -
Moon Young-dae
he has served as a curator at the Hyundai Department Store Museum of Modern Art and as chief curator at the Dong-A Gallery, organizing exhibitions such as “Bourdelle Sculpture,” “Modigliani and the École de Paris,” and “Camille Claudel and Rodin.” While studying abroad at the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia in St. Petersburg, he received support from the Russian Academy of Arts to hold the exhibition “A Path to the Masters.” he discovered the Korean-Russian painter Byeon … -
정이삭
건축사 사무소 에이코랩(a.co.lab)을 이끄는 대표 건축가. 현재 동양대학교 디자인학부 부교수로 재직 중이다. 건축 설계를 비롯해 미술, 디자인, 공연 등 폭넓은 형식의 작업을 이어오고 있다. 대한민국 젊은건축가상(2025), ‘청파동 킷테’로 대한민국 공간문화대상 문체부장관상(2025), ‘N작가 주택’으로 한국건축역사학회 작품상 대상(2025)과 목재공간대전 대상(2025), ‘있기에-앞서’로 대한민국 국토대전 국토교통부장관상(2025) 등을 수상했고, 〈베니스비엔날레 국제건축전〉(2016)을 비롯한 국내외 전시에 기획자 또는 작가로 참여했다. 공저로 『나이층: 청파동 주택 리모델링 기록』 『THE FAR GAME』 등이 있다. -
Noh Eun-yu
Font designer and researcher. She founded Notype in 2018 and has been creating letters based on research and experimentation since then. She teaches typography at Konkuk University, Ewha Womans University, and Hongik University. She graduated from Hongik University’s Department of Visual Design in 2006, and received her master’s degree in 2008 with a thesis on “A study on the Hangul phonetic alphabet system for phonetic transcription of Japanese” and her doctorate in 2011 with a … -
Sakurada Jun
He graduated from the Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics, Gakushuin University, Japan. After working as a programmer, system engineer, and web designer, he has been running the website “Visual Thinking” since 2010, introducing infographics and creating pictograms, diagrams, and infographics. -
Fukuda Shigeo
Graduated from the Department of Design at Tokyo University of the Arts, she worked at Ajinomoto Co., Inc. and Deska Co. before embarking on a freelance career. She carved out a unique space in the design world with works that fuse simplified forms and trick art, embodying a playful and cynical spirit. Her accolades include the Gold Prize at the Warsaw International Poster Biennale, the Grand Prix at the Poland 30th Anniversary of Victory International Poster Competition, the Newcomer Award …