Adapter on Ping Mag
I only recently learned about the design firm Adapter from the japanese online art/design magazine Ping Mag, which i think is one of the best sources of interviews with contemporary artists and people involved with visual culture. They recently interviewed Kenji Harigai the founder of Adapter who’s work rangers from fine art gallery work, to fashion for labels that Xie would probably know more about, to private commission/gallery work for the likes of nike. His work is emblematic of a generation of designers now who, like myself, secretly aren’t really sure if we’re artists or not. That aspect aside Harigai touches on some interesting aspect of the kind of work that designers do now, a fascinating perspective was that of personal response to war rather than that of a public demonstration:
“There were a lot of wars after 9/11 and many creators stood up for anti-war movements, which I totally support, but personally - I am not really sure how these collaborative artist-actions can actually change the reality. For example, I love Banksy. He painted the wall dividing Palestine from Israel and created other works with a strong anti-war message - but doing this, he used his original ways of expression. I like his attitude. I think it is important to cry out for peace, but also believe it is important to maintain a personal perspective when you take that kind of action.”
Later moves on in a issue more related to perception of mediums and body politics. His sentiment on the topic of how digital and analog are analogous was a breathe of fresh air for me. This is something graphic designers have lived with for decades now, and I’m glad to hear it discussed in a fine art venue:
“…people a little older than me would probably point that out, but for my generation the crossing of digital and analog is nothing special. We naturally enjoy the technology and we are hardly conscious about whether this is digital or analog. The digital has already become the true format for expression anyway, that is like some common sense among Japanese young creators. Whether or not you then combine that with analog doesn’t really matter.”
All in all i would recommend checking this article out for sure.
xie
yes, we carry Surface to Air at R.H. in the men’s section…