Super Potato Design is the first full-length book to present the
work and conceptual ideas of the internationally renowned Japanese
design firm Super Potato, founded by Takashi Sugimoto.
Super Potato's compelling designs for the interiors of restaurants,
shops and hotels, as well as Takashi Sugimoto's designs for tea ceremony
spaces and utensils, are richly complex compositions of materials which
create simple, strong spaces.
Using traditional Japanese building materials such as bamboo, wood, and
stone, but creating original yet timeless spaces, Super Potato's designs
avoid specific stylistic characterizations and short-lived fashion. By
finding contemporary expression for essential concepts present in
traditional Japan and combining materials in unexpected ways to create
exciting spaces, Super Potato's work has had a significant impact on
interior design in Japan and throughout Asia.
Super Potato Design is generously illustrated with 320 full-color
photographs by the respected Japanese photographer Yoshio Shiratori, who
has recorded Super Potato's projects since the firm's conception in
1973. Architect and Japan scholar Mira Locher introduces the ideas and
influences of Takashi Sugimoto, the founder and principal designer of
Super Potato, and provides a thorough explanation of each project.
Architectural drawings further describe the projects. A forward by Tadao
Anso, interviews between Takashi Sugimoto and architect Kiyoshi Sey
Takeyama, and also graphic designer Kenya Hara, explore the ideas
relevant to Japanese designers today. A list of the Complete Works of
Super Potato rounds off the book.
