About
A Hub for Creative Sensibility
Education at KIT
The Igarashi Takenobu Archive is a new learning hub for students to cultivate the ability to perceive and imagine this world from a unique perspective.
Today we live in an ever-changing world, shaped daily by evolving technologies in robotics, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things. Accordingly, there is an increasing need to nurture talent capable of contributing to future society through critical thinking, articulation of one’s own ideas, and attuning one’s senses to the surrounding world. KIT has incorporated STEAM* into its ethos. For “A (Art),” KIT introduces creative sensibility education as the key pivot. The Igarashi Takenobu Archive will spearhead the study of art at KIT through a unique program with the works and research materials of sculptor and designer Takenobu Igarashi.
*An acronym for five closely connected areas of study: science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics.
A Hub for Creative Sensibility Education at KIT
Igarashi Takenobu
Photo by Ito Rumiko
Born in 1944 in Takikawa, Hokkaido, Igarashi was educated at Tama Art University and went on to obtain a master’s degree in art at the University of California, Los Angeles. Active on the international stage as a graphic and product designer since the 1970s, he has taught at Chiba University and at UCLA.
Igarashi was a cofounder of the Faculty of Art and Design at Tama Art University, which established Japan’s first computerized design education program, and became the inaugural head of the Department of Design.
Igarashi changed direction in 1994 to become a sculptor.
He became the ninth president of Tama Art University in 2011 and is now emeritus professor. He has been produced numerous works for public spaces, both in Japan and overseas, based on his philosophy of art for the everyday.
Igarashi has had an illustrious career for more than half a century as a designer and artist, and is firmly committed to educating younger generations of artists.
Igarashi Takenobu’s website
Kanazawa Institute of Technology
Established in 1965, the Kanazawa Institute of Technology was founded on the idea that society will benefit from the fostering of engineers. KIT strives to educate based on its principles of “Character Building,” “Technological Innovation,” and “Industry-University Collaboration.”
With projects crossing generational thresholds, academic disciplines, and cultural backgrounds, students utilize AI and IoT to uncover areas of research with great value to society. Solutions conceived take shape by way of experiment, verification, and validation. Through this type of social inquiry, students are able to foster research capabilities that have the power to change the future.
Lectures are also tailored from the perspective of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, giving students the opportunity to come up with projects that leverage the strengths of different departments and bring global challenges closer to home with a focus through social issues.
KIT aims to produce excellent engineers who are capable of leading the way in a future borne from the information society of today.
Kanazawa Institute of Technology’s Website
Three Initiatives with an Exhibition at its Heart
1. An Exhibition for the Discerning Eye
Collection pieces and materials will regularly be put on display. Exhibitions may consist of pieces by Takenobu Igarashi only, or display his works alongside those of other artists. The uniquely curated exhibitions will compel the viewer to become aware of the pleasure of viewing, and to see a hidden beauty that may not be expressible in words. The Archive showcases the quality of the pieces while asking the viewer to consider what makes them so appealing. Visual juxtapositions give the viewer an opportunity to see things in a new light.
2. Research on Takenobu Igarashi’s Work
The Archive will act as a hub for research into the social and cultural context of Igarashi’s work, as well as that of the designers and artists who came into contact with Takenobu Igarashi himself. Results garnered from such research may also be displayed in an exhibition.
3. A Library of Works and Material
In addition to preserving a permanent collection in the Archive, new works and materials, including books on art and design and pieces for future exhibitions, will also be considered.
Network
A network of collaboration will be formed with design and art groups, as well as educational institutions in Japan and overseas that run similar activities.
The following are institutions that hold works of Takenobu Igarashi in Japan.
TAKEO ARCHIVES
TAKEO ARCHIVES is an institution operated by TAKEO Co., Ltd. is a specialized paper trading company. It holds many materials and works related to graphic design, including the Takenobu Igarashi Poster Collection, the Takeo Poster Collection, and the Letterhead Collection.
Igarashi Takenobu Museum of Art Kazenobi
Kazenobi is a studio and a gallery space where sculptor and designer Takenobu Igarashi’s works are exhibited. It is located in Shintotsukawa, Hokkaido and operated by the Kaze no Bijutusukan (Museum of the Wind).
Production Team
Facility Design
Design/Supervision : Archiship Studio Iida Yoshihiko Yamashita Yuhei Tsukamoto Ayumi
Facility : P.T.Morimura & Associates, LTD. Yoshida Takashi Furmine Kana
Lighting : Lumimedia lab Iwai Tatsuya Ishii Takenori Tabe Musashi
Furniture : HAYANO ISHO LTD. Hayaho Masatoshi
Sign : hada studio Hada Kenichi
Construction
Architecture : Ikeda Construction Co., Ltd.
Furniture : Kikuchi Kagu Production Company
Electricity : Yonezawa Electrical Engineering Co., Ltd.
Environment Conditioning : Taikisha Ltd.
Sign : YOSHIDA SENDEN CO., LTD.
Logo Design
MORI DESIGN INC. Mori Haruki
Cooperation
Igarashi Atelier Hada Asako
(2023 March)