Representing Graphic Design in Japan

Ikko Tanaka, Kiyoshi Awazu and Tadanori Yokoo as representatives of Japanese graphic design. These design pioneers certainly created the image of “Japanese graphic design” in a sense and actively interacted with museums and designers overseas to promote it. However, how effective is the existing image in a true sense when one thinks about Japanese graphic design today? This program consists of talks and material viewing which introduce various ways to capture Japanese graphic design from the past and today. The aim is to examine what constitutes the idea of graphic design in Japan as well as its unique circumstances and conditions. Speakers will give a presentation about Japanese graphic design from their unique perspectives and positions as researchers, educators, and curators.

Event program:
• Presentation by Sakura Nomiyama
• Presentation by Alexander Tochilovsky
• Presentation & Discussion by Angelina Lippert + Sakura Nomiyama +Alexander Tochilovsky
• Q＆A “What do you know/think about graphic design in Japan?”
Questions will be collected from participants before the event and the panelists will discuss some of the most common topics. 

Speakers biographies:
Sakura Nomiyama is a freelance design researcher and part-time curator at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo. She obtained an M.A. in the History of Design and Curatorial Studies at the Parsons School of Design in New York in 2016 and is currently undertaking research on Japanese posters as a fellow in the Drawings, Prints & Graphic Design department at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. 
Alexander Tochilovsky is a graphic designer, typographer, curator, and educator, with nearly 20 years of professional experience, and 10 years of experience teaching typography. He graduated with a BFA from The Cooper Union, and holds an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art. He is currently the Curator of the Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography. Since 2007 he has taught typography and design at the Cooper Union School of Art, and also teaches the history of typeface design at Type@Cooper, the postgraduate certificate program he co-founded in 2010. 
Angelina Lippert is the Chief Curator of Poster House, America’s first museum dedicated to the art, history, and impact of posters. She holds an MA in the art of the Russian Avant-Garde from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, and a BA in Theology and Art History from Smith College. Prior to her time at the museum, she worked for ten years as a poster specialist at a leading New York auction house. In addition to contributing to dozens of auction catalogs, articles, and blogs, her writing can also be seen in The Art Deco Poster (Vendome, 2013). She is a member of the AAM, AIGA, AAMC, National Arts Club, and is a prospective board member for the Ephemera Society.