Isetan Mitsukoshi and BEAMS have teamed up to host "STAND Kyushu," a project event to rediscover the charms of various parts of Japan, which will begin on March 29th at The Stage on the first floor of the main building of Isetan Shinjuku and on the first floor of BEAMS Japan.
FASHION HEADLINE interviewed Kyushu creators who will be taking part in the event, focusing on the topic.
■NINE LETTERPRESS "Letterpress as seen through design"
"I AM A CAT AS YET I HAVE NO NAME." The letterpress-printed poster, set in a vertical alphabet font, features a witty design featuring a vertically arranged triple A and a cat silhouette.
"Cats are kind of cool, aren't they? I used a calico-like color scheme for the words 'I am a cat,'" says designer Yusuke Nagashima. At this year's STAND Kyushu event, the poster will be presented as a member of the "OK SHOP" group, with two backgrounds, red and gray, and limited to 15 copies each, each numbered.
Streetcars leisurely pass by in Renpei-cho, Kumamoto City. Kyushu Letterpress Printing Company, Nine Letterpress, run by Nagashima Yusuke, is located on the first floor of a building built in the Taisho era as Kumamoto's first rental building. Peeking into a room on the first floor, which exudes a retro atmosphere, the first thing you see is letterpress type and a printing press. The smell of ink gently brushes against your nostrils.
Nagashima, originally from Amakusa, is a designer currently active in Kumamoto City. He learned letterpress printing on his own after receiving a printing press from a defunct printing company and wanting to print his own designs on paper and textures he liked.
The history and techniques of letterpress printing were introduced to Amakusa from Europe approximately 400 years ago. We started workshops in Amakusa with the desire to introduce this technology in a light-hearted way within the context of design expression. We then opened a printing shop here in the hope of sharing this with more people.
Letterpress printing is a printing press that was invented by the German Johann Gutenberg, inspired by a wine press. The texture and feel of the paper, combined with the uneven texture and font design, are appealing. At Nine Letterpress, wooden alphabet type called WOODTYPE is assembled, hand-painted to prevent color mixing, and pressed one color at a time. Unlike printmaking, letterpress printing is characterized by the fact that it is pressed with a raised height of 23mm, creating a unique texture.
"In the world of Japanese letterpress printing, there are many enthusiasts who are particular about traditional Japanese type, but what attracted me was the wordplay style of typography that was incorporated into my favorite graphic design. I believe that old alphabet fonts have a more solid design power, and there are some things that cannot be matched even when arranged on a modern computer."
The original posters hanging in her studio feature quotes from artists and writers like The Beatles and Hemingway, such as "LET IT BE" and "Everyday is a new day." Other attractive posters combine letterpress and freehand painting. Nagashima describes the wooden alphabet type imported from America as "a timeless font that never gets old."
"At first, I felt there wasn't much variety, but as I continued to create, I thought that these designs would become more uniquely my own and that I could share them. Printed matter has developed in everyday life, so I felt it was a bit strange to treat it with the same seriousness as art or a work of art."
Because it is a rare printing technique, the world of letterpress printing tends to be favored by hardcore enthusiasts. He spoke of his desire to spread the word about "x" by focusing on poster production, so that people can enjoy learning about it as part of their interior design without seeing it as difficult.
[Event Information]
"STAND Kyushu"
■Isetan Shinjuku
Dates: March 29th - April 4th
Location: Isetan Shinjuku Main Building, 1st Floor = The Stage
Time: 10:30am - 8pm
■Beams Japan
Dates: March 29th - April 11th
Location: Beams Japan, 1st Floor
Time: 11am - 8pm
[Interview Cooperation]
"NINE LETTERPRESS"
URL: http://letterpressposter.jp
FASHION HEADLINE interviewed Kyushu creators who will be taking part in the event, focusing on the topic.
■NINE LETTERPRESS "Letterpress as seen through design"
"I AM A CAT AS YET I HAVE NO NAME." The letterpress-printed poster, set in a vertical alphabet font, features a witty design featuring a vertically arranged triple A and a cat silhouette.
"Cats are kind of cool, aren't they? I used a calico-like color scheme for the words 'I am a cat,'" says designer Yusuke Nagashima. At this year's STAND Kyushu event, the poster will be presented as a member of the "OK SHOP" group, with two backgrounds, red and gray, and limited to 15 copies each, each numbered.
Streetcars leisurely pass by in Renpei-cho, Kumamoto City. Kyushu Letterpress Printing Company, Nine Letterpress, run by Nagashima Yusuke, is located on the first floor of a building built in the Taisho era as Kumamoto's first rental building. Peeking into a room on the first floor, which exudes a retro atmosphere, the first thing you see is letterpress type and a printing press. The smell of ink gently brushes against your nostrils.
Nagashima, originally from Amakusa, is a designer currently active in Kumamoto City. He learned letterpress printing on his own after receiving a printing press from a defunct printing company and wanting to print his own designs on paper and textures he liked.
The history and techniques of letterpress printing were introduced to Amakusa from Europe approximately 400 years ago. We started workshops in Amakusa with the desire to introduce this technology in a light-hearted way within the context of design expression. We then opened a printing shop here in the hope of sharing this with more people.
Letterpress printing is a printing press that was invented by the German Johann Gutenberg, inspired by a wine press. The texture and feel of the paper, combined with the uneven texture and font design, are appealing. At Nine Letterpress, wooden alphabet type called WOODTYPE is assembled, hand-painted to prevent color mixing, and pressed one color at a time. Unlike printmaking, letterpress printing is characterized by the fact that it is pressed with a raised height of 23mm, creating a unique texture.
"In the world of Japanese letterpress printing, there are many enthusiasts who are particular about traditional Japanese type, but what attracted me was the wordplay style of typography that was incorporated into my favorite graphic design. I believe that old alphabet fonts have a more solid design power, and there are some things that cannot be matched even when arranged on a modern computer."
The original posters hanging in her studio feature quotes from artists and writers like The Beatles and Hemingway, such as "LET IT BE" and "Everyday is a new day." Other attractive posters combine letterpress and freehand painting. Nagashima describes the wooden alphabet type imported from America as "a timeless font that never gets old."
"At first, I felt there wasn't much variety, but as I continued to create, I thought that these designs would become more uniquely my own and that I could share them. Printed matter has developed in everyday life, so I felt it was a bit strange to treat it with the same seriousness as art or a work of art."
Because it is a rare printing technique, the world of letterpress printing tends to be favored by hardcore enthusiasts. He spoke of his desire to spread the word about "x" by focusing on poster production, so that people can enjoy learning about it as part of their interior design without seeing it as difficult.
[Event Information]
"STAND Kyushu"
■Isetan Shinjuku
Dates: March 29th - April 4th
Location: Isetan Shinjuku Main Building, 1st Floor = The Stage
Time: 10:30am - 8pm
■Beams Japan
Dates: March 29th - April 11th
Location: Beams Japan, 1st Floor
Time: 11am - 8pm
[Interview Cooperation]
"NINE LETTERPRESS"
URL: http://letterpressposter.jp
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