(The image above - illustrating chapter 33 A pilgrimage to his shop by Graphic Designer Marcus Haslam- attempts to illustrate the silvery nature transmitted by the photos)
With collaborations.from 100 Yanagi fans, I understand it is the first monographic book in English about him and his work and was made possible by @instamarriott2.0 and Duncan Riches.
If you like product design, this is a book you will find interesting. Not only because Yanagi's work has shaped a lot of the product design you are familiar with but also because you will be able to appreciate the impact he has made in the world through the thoughts and stories of designers, curators artists and critics.
I was super grateful to be invited to play a part in it and because of it you may think I am biased , hence I am here to share a story:
I was not familiar with Yanagi's work until my wonderful sister in law gave us , as a wedding present, the two tongs designed by him.
Tongs have never been part of my upbringing because they are made to be used by giants, take up too much space in the drawer and are not useful daily. These ones, however, I use 90% of our days .
It is this personal experience that made me focus on "Empathy by design" as the subject of my contribution.
As designers, many of us in the west have been trained to place too much focus on ourselves, on what we like, on telling clients what they should do ... Etc. Often forgetting that designing is not our right but a privilege and that we design not for us but to provide solutions for others.
If you want to find out more about the Appreciation Society or the book go to: @soriyanagiappreciationsociety
