Series: Auxiliary Lines for Things & People #18: A Journey to Seek Fragments of the Future

PROFILE

Mai Tsunoo / Design Writer

After graduating from Keio University's Faculty of Environment and Information Studies, she worked at a manufacturing company before becoming an assistant to design engineer Shunji Yamanaka from 2012 to 2016. After spending a year in Scotland, she is now working as a freelancer.
While searching for ways to freely express what needs to be communicated, she writes for media outlets such as "Nikkei Design" and handles the layout and copywriting for exhibitions.
Her major works include the layout for the 70th anniversary exhibition of the University of Tokyo's Institute of Industrial Science "Perhaps in the Future: Engineering × Design" (National Art Center, Tokyo · 2018), and text writing for "Insects: Models for Design" (21_21 DESIGN SIGHT, 2019).
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Starting March 29, the planned exhibition 'Future Elements: Experimental Laboratory for Prototyping in Science and Design' has begun at 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT in Roppongi. This exhibition, directed by my mentor Shunji Yamanaka, features works born out of collaborations between scientists and designers (or artists), and I myself am also involved in text and planning cooperation.

I'm writing this now during the installment period, where sounds of material cutting echo on the site, cutting sheets are being pasted on the walls, and prototypes are steadily being installed. Though I've worked on various exhibitions, the pleasant tension during preparations and the solidarity of the field never fail to leave me fond memories.

The focus of this exhibition is the prototypes created through collaborations between the Yamanaka Lab and a variety of researchers. Additionally, seven new groups of creators have been invited to scatter various 'fragments of the future' throughout.

Everything from posters attached to Tokyo Midtown and other buildings, to banners hanging outside the building, the iconic green visual of this exhibition catches your eye. The overall graphic was handled by Ken Okamoto Design Office. Even the captions in the venue are unified in green, with the readable and beautifully laid out cutting sheet captions that capture the vibrancy. As the writer of the text, this is very gratifying.

Upon entering the building and descending the stairs, the first thing that catches your eye is a 'bone'. The work titled 'Articulating' by nomena and Megu Gunji is a 'touchable skeletal specimen' that was created as nomena, a group of engineers, immersed themselves in Gunji's specialty, anatomy. By touching the real models of various animals' legs, arms, or jaws (teeth) and experiencing the moment the bones fit perfectly together (this comfort is hard to put into words), the charm of the scientific field of anatomy might be appreciated.

In the room known as Gallery 1, 'Robotic World' is showcased. The Future Robotics Technology Research Center (fuRo) at Chiba Institute of Technology, which has been developing robots with Yamanaka, presents a room where a group of real robots can not only be observed but enjoyed interactively on a gigantic screen. Try operating it with the iPad or the 'ON THE FLY' interface.

Probably the first thing noticed in Gallery 2, the largest room of all, is the light tabletops installed as if floating in the space. The overall space design for the exhibition was handled by Mandai Architects. The pedestal is based on the exhibition 'Prototyping in Tokyo' by Yamanaka Lab, which has been touring in three JAPAN HOUSE (facilities established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote Japanese culture) locations worldwide. The thinness creates a gentle warp in the metal, which is utilized for the pedestal, and the bare metal plate on top emphasizes and enhances the curved surface.

The pair utilizing this pedestal as a workshop space are the DLX Design Lab (DLX for short) at the University of Tokyo and the Yoshiho Ikeuchi Lab at the same university. The Ikeuchi Lab is advancing research on the culture of brain neurons (nerve cells) outside the body, while DLX is considering how one could interact with these neurons. 'Talking with Neurons' is an installation that attempts to 'talk' with neurons in an unexpected way.

The design engineer Mitsuru Muramatsu is the only participant in this exhibition who was assigned two roles. As both an engineer and designer, he took the title 'Sculpture of the Field' and was consistent in executing everything from the development of software for a new wearable product design method to proposing the final output. Attendees will also be able to experience this software at the venue.