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Designing Japan: A Future Built on Aesthetics

Designing Japan: A Future Built on Aesthetics - Main image
$20 $40 In stock

Category: Architecture

Designing Japan presents renowned designer Kenya Hara’s vision of how his industry can support Japan in crafting a future founded on a unique philosophy of beauty as well as crowd-sourced wisdom from around the world. A master collaborator, meticulous organizer, and globally conscious innovator, Hara draws on more than three decades of participations in design work and exhibition curating, as well as deep professional interaction with creators from many fields.

In Designing Japan Hara reveals methods that make publicly accessible aesthetic inquiries of how this island nation will proceed as its population ages, other nations take over manufacturing, and technology develops. Illustrations and examples recognize successful problem-solving through design, proving that it is a living, changing industry that remains relevant not in spite of, but as a partner to, advancing technology.

Customer Reviews (5.0 / 5 · 19 reviews)

Emma D. ★★★★★

Hara’s case for beauty as a national strategy is refreshingly practical, and the way he ties traditional aesthetics to real engineering challenges makes each essay feel urgent rather than academic. I picked it up for a long flight and finished it in two sittings, which rarely happens with architectu

Miles H. ★★★★★

The essay format and the way he argues for beauty as a national strategy is genuinely thought-provoking. I grabbed it for a design research project and ended up finishing it in one weekend.

Steven ★★★★★

The way Hara connects crowd-sourced wisdom to Japan’s design future really stuck with me after reading this. It’s a slim book but dense with ideas I keep coming back to, especially the chapter on how beauty can shape national identity.