katsumi asaba brings his 'sense of humor' to 21_21 design sight exhibition

from now until june 30, 2019, tokyo’s 21_21 design sight holds an exhibition entitled ‘sense of humor.’ the presentation is overseen by japanese art director katsumi asaba who, from his travels around the world, feels that humor is one of the most important senses in communication. asaba has spent years amusing people in his work as a graphic designer, and in directing this exhibition, he has gathered documents and found objects that have inspired him, along with the works of designers and artists who share his sense of humor.

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

from the valuable things, to that whose value has yet to be found, from the manmade to that which nature gave birth to, the exhibition at 21_21 design sight aims to show that we can rediscover the humor that surrounds us in our day-to-day lives, by looking at shapes and expressions of humor from across ages and borders. according to asaba, the sense of humor could be called part of the essence of communication that is vital for design and creativity.

view of gallery 1
photo: kaoru suzuki

‘where does a laugh come from? what is the essence of humor?’ questions katsumi asaba. ‘sometimes one laughs alone (perhaps at private jokes, or something darkly amusing). however, people also laugh as a sign of shared fun. the sense of humor changes depending on time, country, and culture, but could there be a form of laughter that transcends all barriers?’

image © designboom

‘I want to gather every possible source of humor from across the planet,’ asaba continues. ‘the means of expression may differ, from soft smiles to loud chuckling, howls of laughter, bursting guffaws, derisive snickers, flirtatious giggling, cynical smirks, and grins both honest and wry. I want to pick each one of them up and put them in the same place.’ ‘sense of humor’ remains on view at 21_21 design sight in tokyo until june 30, 2019.

image © designboom

image © designboom

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

image © designboom

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

image © designboom

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

view of gallery 2
photo: kaoru suzuki

image © designboom

view of sunken court
photo: kaoru suzuki

image © designboom

dean poole ‘fingers’ 2018

katsumi asaba
image © designboom

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project info:

date: march 15 (fri.)– june 30 (sun.), 2019
close: tuesdays (except april 30)
time: 10:00 – 19:00 (entrance until 18:30)
*special opening hours for roppongi art night 2019: may 25 (sat.) 10:00-23:30 (entrance until 23:00)
venue: 21_21 design sight gallery 1 & 2
organized by: 21_21 design sight, the miyake issey foundation
in association with: agency of cultural affairs; ministry of economy, trade and industry; minato city board of education
subsidized by: embassy of france / institut français du japon
special sponsor: mitsui fudosan co., ltd.
supported by: green display co., ltd., tamasu co., ltd., dnp foundation for cultural promotion
exhibition director, graphic design: katsumi asaba
planning associates: norio nakamura, koichi suzuno / torafu architects, keiko kamijo
participating creators: zin akaki, anothermountainman(stanley wong), ron arad, haru asaba, xu bing, shigeo fukuda, goo choki par, yuta hayakawa, jianping he, katsuhiko hibino, gan hosoya, tsuguya inoue, kuniyoshi kaneko, tenmei kanoh, buster keaton, yoji kuri, tommy li, masayoshi nakajo, norio nakamura, dean poole, damien poulain, shuzo takiguchi,shobei tamaya, tiger tateishi, mami ueno, makoto wada, kohei watanabe, john wood and paul harrison, shuhei yamamoto, simon yotsuya
21_21 design sight directors: issey miyake, taku satoh, naoto fukasawa
associate director: noriko kawakami