Fukasawa, Naoto

In 1980, Naoto Fukasawa graduated from the Faculty of Art and 3D Design at Tama University of the Arts . After several years as a designer at Seiko Epson , in 1989 he moved to San Francisco and joined the small company ID two, which then employed only 15 people (today it is a large international industrial design agency IDEO with branches in the USA , Great Britain and Japan ).

In 1996, Fukasawa returns to Tokyo and establishes the Asian branch of IDEO.

In January 2002, Naoto Fukasawa opts for an independent creative existence and opens his own Naoto Fukasawa Design design bureau in Tokyo . Then he was invited to the advisory committee of the Japanese company Muji . For the Muji CD player design, Fukasawa was awarded the prestigious iF Gold Award.

In 2003, Fukasawa established a new ± 0 industrial brand that manufactures household items from umbrellas and humidifiers to electrical appliances, and announced a series of home electronics and accessories developed in conjunction with Takara Co. Ltd. and Diamond Corporation.

In 2009, Forbes columnists listed Naoto Fukasawa as one of the eight most original, successful, and sought-after designers of the year.

Today, Naoto Fukasawa, in addition to design activities, is also engaged in teaching: he lectures at Musashino University of the Arts and at the Tama University of the Arts in Tokyo .

Co-author of the books “Design Ecology” and “Optimum”.

Naoto Fukasawa is looking for meanings that already exist. He does what many people’s imaginations already have as something necessary and useful. "I do not invent anything, I just take this thing out of my head and turn the subconscious desire into reality."

Like all Japanese people, he loves to read books on ancient Japanese philosophy, considers the best moment of the day to be the time when, after dinner, he goes home, looks up at the sky, listens to jazz and answers the question who he would single out from the current designers, he answers: “Nobody” .

The most famous project by Naoto Fukasawa is the design of the CD player for MUJI. Originally invented in 1999 as part of the “ Without Thought ” design study, this CD player simulates a wall fan that rotates a disc in sight. A single speaker is integrated in the housing, but there is no lid. The power cord just dangles, also acting as a switch: just pull it to turn on the music.

In 2005, the New York Museum of Modern Art included the Muji CD player in its permanent collection.

In 2001, Fukasawa created the concept of the info.bar phone, which immediately stands out in a market awash with folding models. According to him, Infobar was conceived as a “device satisfying conflicting desires,” which would become not only a means of communication, but also a fashionable, distinguishing feature of its owner.

Other interesting projects:

• 2004 - “natural” packaging for fruit juices.
• 2007 - “Ideal Home” project at the Cologne Furniture Exhibition.
• 2007 - a set of trays and cups “Vertigo” ( Russian “Dizziness” ) for “B&B Italia”;
• 2007 - 2008 - a series of chairs for the Vitra Edition, made of concrete, acrylic, marble, metal, felt and other materials;
• 2008 - a triple sofa “Muku” for “Driade” and a chair “Papilio” for “B&B Italia”.
• 2009 - Kaga precious wall clock in gold, silver and bronze.
• 2009 - the appearance of the N310 netbook for Samsung Electronics .

• Naoto Fukasawa (Russian) . D.Journal. Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Naoto Fukasawa: The soul of an item (Russian) . D.Journal (10/19/2007). Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Nina Farizova. Interview with Naoto Fukasawa (Russian) . SALON-interior magazine No. 2 (113) . Salon Press (2007). Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Brand Website ± 0 Naoto Fukasawa . Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Naoto Fukasawa (English) . Designboom.com. Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Ben Hughes. Naoto Fukasawa and Plus Minus Zero . World Market Intelligence (09/22/2009). Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.
• Naoto Fukasawa. 79 products by 10 manufacturers. (eng.) . stylepark.com. Date of treatment December 25, 2009. Archived March 13, 2012.

• Minimalism in design