KASHIWA SATO

Kashiwa Sato

Creative Director
Kashiwa Sato is a leading creative figure in Japan who brings fresh perspectives on today’s global society. Born in Tokyo in 1965, he is a graduate of the Department of Graphic Design at Tama Art University. After a period of employment at Hakuhodo Inc., a prominent Japanese advertising company, he started his own independent business in 2000, establishing the creative studio SAMURAI the same year. As a brand strategy architect he has earned high regard in a variety of fields for consistent, comprehensive work distinguished by a powerful creativity — from conception development and the design of communication planning to visual development. Among his major projects have been logo design for the National Art Center, Tokyo and the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra; creative direction in branding for Uniqlo Co., Ltd., 7-Eleven Inc., the Rakuten Group, and the Imabari Towel Industrial Association; and total branding design for Fuji Kindergarten and Yokohama’s CupNoodles Museum. In recent years his work has expanded to include such large-scale architectural projects as the Takeda Global Headquarters and Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd.’s Kansai factory. Sato was appointed a Japan Cultural Envoy by the
Agency for the Cultural Affairs of Japan for 2016 with a focus on deepening and broadening international understanding of Japan’s quality products, culture, techniques, content, and so forth. These are just a few of the books he has authored: Kashiwa Sato's Ultimate Method for Reaching the Essentials (Nikkei Business Bunko), Kiki-jozu hanashi-jozu [Good listener, skilled talker] (Shueisha), and Sato Kashiwa on Meetings: Achieving Breakthroughs in Your Conventional Meetings (Daiyamondo-sha). Among his many awards are the Mainichi Design Prize, the Tokyo ADC Award (Grand Prix), the Tokyo TDC Prize (Gold Prize), the Asahi Advertising Award (Grand Prix), the Kamekura Yusaku Award, and the Japan Package Design Award.
Official website: kashiwasato.com

THE SPACE WITHIN

Sato, who as a child had always found manga covers, logos, signs, and marks interesting, says he could see a universe (a SPACE) in them. The introduction of this exhibition showcases the collage work SPACE, said to be the origin of Sato, and the work 6 ICONS, which was the first designs he made with his Macintosh computer when he joined Hakuhodo in 1989.
While touching on Sato's creative philosophy, including the concept of "super-organization" that is at the base of his simple, clear, and unforgettable design, these works also give a glimpse of Sato himself.

ADVERTISING AND BEYOND

Sato started working at the advertising agency Hakuhodo Inc. in 1989 and created many cutting-edge advertisements as an art director for the company in the 1990s. After setting up his own creative studio SAMURAI in 2000, he gradually expanded his sphere of activity. One of the biggest accomplishments he made during this time was his expansion of the definition of “media” through designs. Prior to this, mainstream traditional advertising focused on television, radio, newspapers, and magazines – considered the “Big 4” of media at the time. However, Sato was inclined to think outside of the box. He realized that anything appearing before the human eye has the potential to become a form of media to effectively convey information, if treated the right way. From this point, Sato’s perspective on media broadened to include CD sleeves, beverage packaging designs, shopping bags, the many posters hanging in train stations, billboards, vehicle wraps on buses, and tissue-packs distributed in streets, just to name a few. He created lucid designs with a shared unity for such seemingly mundane objects. The advertising campaigns he created became increasingly ubiquitous throughout streets, as they became icons and emblems that convey information to all who see them. In this section, a variety of works from Sato’s major projects carried out during the late 1990s to the 2000s are displayed in their original dynamic scale – including his signature outdoor billboards and posters used in train stations. In addition to items produced for advertising campaigns, Sato’s designs for products and packaging are also presented.

THE LOGO

Generally, logos are created so that they inform conceptual ideas such as corporate philosophies and values of products or services by visualizing and symbolizing the essence of those concepts. Logos form the core of communication, delivered through a wide variety of media including products, stores and facilities, building signage, business cards and envelopes, app icons and websites, social media, packaging, shopping bags, and tags on clothing. Therefore, it is crucial that logos always have a design that is clear and consistent, regardless of size or texture. Sato has worked in many different fields including companies, educational institutions, cultural facilities, hospitals, local industries and clothing brands, and has created many logos throughout his career. Sato’s logo designs have impactful characteristics, with clear and concise structures and color schemes—making them extremely memorable. Logos that all are familiar with are realized in this section as large-scale paintings and sculptures, delivering a grandiose form of installation art in a unique approach to displaying his works. These large, vibrant logos are all created with materials derived from the business and philosophies of the companies and organizations he works with on each project. Visitors can get a taste of Sato’s unique creativity—his ability to vibrantly visualize the unseen, while also creating things that are not yet seen.

THE POWER OF GRAPHIC DESIGN

Graphic designs are generally created on flat surfaced media such as paper. Sato produces a wide variety of projects, yet all of his ideas evolve from the basics of graphic designing.
A selection of Sato’s excellent work on posters and books is presented in this section of the exhibition. Simple and clear, yet vivid and powerful, while also exquisitely beautiful; Sato’s graphic designs catch the eyes of viewers.

ICONIC BRANDING PROJECTS

Since the mid-2000s Sato has been working as a creative director, undertaking branding projects in various fields including companies, educational institutions, cultural facilities, hospitals, local industries, traditional cultures, and clothing brands. In the branding business, it is essential to bring out a project’s core values, and vividly visualize them so they are effectively communicated. Sato’s strategy has been to perceive anything that appears in front of the human eye as media, and to transform this content into “icons” through his designs. Of course, the foundation of these “icons” are the logos. Through his work, Sato has been able to change products, spaces such as retail stores and offices, buildings, and even the towns where those objects exist, into icons that are able to deliver the intended message precisely and effectively.
As an example, in the successful branding of Imabari Towel, the whiteness of the towel implies “safety, security, and high quality” of the product itself. Along with that, having a striking logo allows for a visual identity to be created, leaving a strong impression on viewers’ memories.
Another project Sato has taken the lead on is the renovation of Fuji Kindergarten in Tachikawa, Tokyo. A unique oval-shaped building (designed by Takaharu Tezuka and Yui Tezuka), the project personifies Sato’s overarching concept of “the kindergarten building itself being a gigantic playground equipment” – and that concept is the iconic symbol of the kindergarten.
In this section, many of Sato’s projects are highlighted with detailed presentations on the innovativeness of his one-of-a-kind “iconic branding” that is still evolving today.

LINES / FLOW

This section displays an installation comprised of two contrasting artwork series, LINES and FLOW, which can be considered as icons representing Sato.
The LINES series forms a key visual image in this exhibition. Comprised of clear red, blue, and white straight lines, the series is regarded as Sato’s personal search in relation to the universal question of “What is beauty?” A perfectly straight line is created by the human mind and does not exist in the natural world. For Sato, a straight line symbolizes a concept, something which only humans possess, and he finds sublime beauty in it. In LINES, the straight lines can be infinitely rearranged and have the potential to be developed through all types of expressive medium such as paintings, porcelain panels, and videos. It is an icon representing Sato’s activities which have constantly expanded the frontier of design and redrawn anew various existing frameworks. This exhibition displays new works from the LINES series which include a concept video, sets of plates and porcelain panels made from Arita porcelain, and large-scale works using stainless steel.
In vivid contrast to the geometrical composition of LINES, the FLOW series consists of organic drawings on Japanese paper, depicted by swinging down a large brush seeped in blue mineral pigment in a single movement. Utilizing only movement and gravity, without any direct contact with the paper, FLOW is created by the instantaneous movement of Sato’s body and it visualizes the energy and power of the natural world which humans cannot control. In his search for an expressive style that best fits the essence of an object, Sato sometimes does not use a computer and instead has received high praise for incorporating fascinating illustrations and drawings which he personally has depicted for his designs. Thus, FLOW is an icon which symbolizes Sato’s excellence as a painter. This exhibition displays the three latest works in the FLOW series along with the Arita porcelain series, DISSIMILAR, which can be regarded as its predecessor. Furthermore, a highlight for visitors is Sato’s dynamic video which records the moment when the mineral pigment splatters in the air.

Online Events & Projects can be found on the Exhibition Website.

Related Online Content

Online content related to this exhibition has been released on the KASHIWA SATO Exhibition Youtube Channel.