PROFILE

Description

Description

The history of Japanese design has developed significantly in the post-war period. The key figure in this development was Masaru Katzumie, one of the pioneering design critics. The best known of his achievements is the practical application of the international symbol system at the 1964 Olympic Games Tokyo, which influenced international events (Olympic Games and World Expos) in many countries. Subsequently, the system was popularised as pictograms for airports, public facilities, commercial premises, etc., and continues to be used to this day.
Eiichi Izuhara, who was responsible for editing the five-volume collection "Masaru Katzumie's anthology" (Kodansha, 1986) and served as a professor at the university, classified and analysed Katzumie's work in "Annual design review", No 51 (Japanese Society for the Science of Design, 1985). These were "design enlightenment and criticism, education through modeling, improvement of the status of designers, promoter of design, and internationalisation of Japanese design". Katzumie studied aesthetics and art history at university, and had a wide range of education and interests in literature, tanka poetry, mountaineering and songwriting. Izuhara speculates that Katzumie's contributions to the magazine "Seikatsu Bijutsu" in the mid-1930s and his friendship with designer Yusaku Kamekura and others may have led him to the world of design. In 1941, he was commissioned by the National Research Institute of Industrial Arts Attached to the Ministry of Industry, and from around 1944 he began to work on art criticism and translations of foreign design books. "He wrote more than 40 translations of books, 220 journal articles and 110 contributions to newspapers", "covering not only the fields of industrial and graphic design, but also architecture and urban planning, as well as political, economic and educational issues related to the promotion of design".
There is another interesting detail in Izuhara's article in "Annual design review". This was at the start of the post-war period, when organisations such as the Japan Advertising Artists Club, the Japan Industrial Design Association were established one after another, and the organisation of the Japanese design world began to take shape. Katzumie participated in the establishment of all these bodies and in 1952 he conceived his ideal organisation of the Japanese design world. The organisational chart drawn up by Katzumie is reproduced in the article (first published in "Kogei Nusu", no. 20, vol. 11). The latter included design magazines, design annuals, design centers for various industries, a design library, a design problem discussion group (later established as the "Ministry of International Trade and Industry Encouragement Council"), an industrial council (later established as the "Japan Institute of Design Promotion"), as well as a "design museum" in the concept. We would have liked to hear what Katzumie's idea of a design museum was in the context of PLAT's activities. Currently, approximately 6,000 archive materials of Masaru Katzumie are stored at the Art Archives Center of Tama Art University (AAC). In fact, these materials were donated before the AAC was established, and their origin has remained unclear. Having been informed that Nakagawa Chemical had stored the Katzumie Masaru materials and were able to speak to the company's chairman, Mr Yukiya Nakagawa, his director and eldest daughter, Ms Noriko Konuma, and Mr Yukio Ota, a sign and graphic designer.

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Writing, editing, translation and publishing

"Yamakoya", coterie magazine (1938); "Yama e Hiraku Mado", Hobundo (1941); "Te to Zokei", Kyoiku Bijutsu Shinkokai (1944); "Te to Kikai", translation of a book written by Friedrich Herig, Kagaku Shinkosha (1944); "Kogei to Shakai", translation of a book written by Oscar Bie, Houunsha (1947); "Te to Sinka", Bokutachi no Kenkyusho, SaelaShobo (1949); "Kogei Nusu", Industrial Arts Institute, MARUZEN (1951-64); "Shougyou dezain zensyu", 5 volumes, Evening Star, David sha (1951-54); "ABC no rekishi", SaelaShobo (1953); "Sekai no shougyou dezaina", Davidsha (1956); "Gendai no dezain", Kawade Shobo (1956); "Guropius to Nihon bunka", Shokokusha (1956); "Shin zoukei bijutsu (middle school textbook) ", Nippon Books (1957); "Indasutoriaru dezain", written by Herbert Read, co-translated with Yasuji Maeda", Misuzu　Shobo (1957); "Senden + Dezain", Maecker + Huber, Hakuyosha (1958); "Hyakumannin no dezain", translation of a book written by Henry Dreyfuss, Davidsha (1959); "Gurafikku dezain", Geibi Shuppansha, Diamond-sha, Kodansha (1959-84); "Gurafikku dezain Taikei", 5 volumes, Bijutsu Shuppan-Sha (1960-61); "Kougyou dezain", translation of a book written by Harold Van Doren, Hakuyosha (1962); "Gendai dezain nyumon", Kajima Institute Publishing (1965); "Gendai dezain riron no essensu", supervisor, PERIKANSHA Publishing (1966); "Sekai no gurafikku dezain", 7 volumes, Kodansha (1974-76); " Katzumie Masaru zensyu", 5 volumes, Kodansha (1986)

Criticisms

"Kagu to yousiki", "Soushoku kagu ishyou syusei", Gizyutu Siryo Kankokai (1951); "Bijutsu to ningen", "Kougei", "Bijutsu", Mainichi Shimbun (1951); "Habato rido to D.P.U.", "Kogei Nusu, no. 20, vol. 4, National Research Institute of Industrial Arts Attached to the Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Commerce and Industry (1952); "Dezain no bigaku", "Shougyou dezain zensyu", no. 1, Evening Star, Davidsha (1953); "Dezain undou no 100 nen", "Libingu Dezain", serialised in the first issue January-December, Bijutsu Shuppan-Sha (1955); "Bijutsu kyouiku no keifu(seiyou)", "Gaikoku no bijutsu kyouiku", "Bijutsu kyouiku kouza 1 genri hen", Principles, KANEKOSHOBO (1956); "Dezaina tanjou", "Libingu dezain", vol. 1, Bijutsu Shuppan-Sha (1957); "Konnichi no kagu", "Konnichi no Jutaku 20 seiki seikatsu no dezain", Asahi Shimbun Company (1958); "Modan kurafuto – Kinou syugi no sikaku kara", "Libingu dezain", vol.3 (1958); "Bijuaru dezain", "Grafikku dezain taikei",no. 1, Bijutsu Shuppan-Sha (1961), "Guropiusu to bauhausu","Sekai kenchiku zensyu 9 kindai yoroppa amerika nihon taikei", HEIBONSHA (1961), "Kunstgewerbe und Kunstindustrire in Japan, " Form" (1961); "Yanagi souetsu no shi to mingei", "Geijutsu shinchou",July issue, SHINCHOSHA (1961); "Graphic Design in Japan", "Graphis" (1964); "Design Policy for the Tokyo Olympic", "Print" (1964); "Kokusai gyoji to ekotoba – sonogono jikken ni motoduku mitoshi", "Asahi janalu", Asahi Shimbun Company (1968)

Interview 1

Interview 01：Yukiya Nakagawa, Noriko Konuma

Date: 3 April 2024, 15:00-16:30.
Location: Nakagawa Chemical Inc.
Interviewees: Yukiya Nakagawa, Noriko Konuma
Interviewers: Aia Urakawa, Keiko Kubota
Writing: Aia Urakawa

Nakagawa Chemical has been instrumental in preserving the archives of Masaru Katzumie, who contributed to the post-war design world in Japan

〈Introduction〉
The Tama Art University Art Archives Center holds approximately 6,000 primary and secondary materials on Masaru Katzumie (1909-1983), who led the Japanese design world from the pre-war to the post-war period, as the "Masaru Katzumie Archive".
In addition to materials relating to the Good Design Movement, the Japanese Society for the Science of Design, the magazine "Graphic Design", the World Design Assembly (1960), the Olympic Games Tokyo (1964), the Japan World Exposition (1970), the Sapporo Olympics (1972), etc., there are approximately 50 boxes of Japanese books (about 1,000 volumes, with lists of Japanese books) There are approximately 60 boxes of Western books, approximately 80 boxes of documents, photographs, personal letters, memos, flyers, collections and other materials, a poster collection of approximately 2,000 posters and an art collection of approximately 190 works of art. The museum is willing to consult with the public regarding the release of the materials. These materials were donated to the Tama Art University Art Archives Center between 2002 and 2003, and through interviews it became clear where these materials had been stored and how they had been donated.

Masaru Katzumie's role in the design world

At the CS Design Award ceremony in 1982. Mr Masaru Katzumie (left) and Chairman Yukiya Nakagawa. At right, Graphic Design, No. 94, ‘Memorial Issue for Masaru Katzumie. © "Graphic Design" (No. 94, June 1984)

Konuma　A photograph of him and my father appears in the memorial issue of M. Katzumie's memorial in "Graphic Design" (vol. 94, published in June 1984).

Nakagawa　It was more than 40 years ago. I just had a photo of you and Mr Katzumie taken together, so we asked him to publish it together with his obituary. Do you know when this "Graphic Design" was first published?

ー　The memorial issue contains a detailed chronology of Mr Katzumie's life, and it seems that the first issue of "Graphic Design" was published in 1959, when Mr Katzumie was 50 years old and his editorial office was located in Eifuku-cho, Suginami-ku, Tokyo. The magazine was first published by Geibi Shuppansha, which he co-founded with his mountain friend Mr Akio Iijima. The editor-in-chief was Mr Katzumie and the art editor was Mr Hiromu Hara. I read the first issue, which is held at the National Diet Library, and it is bilingual and elaborate with several different papers. The cover design of the first issue was by Mr Ikko Tanaka, and the articles included "Newcomers in Japan" by Mr Yusaku Kamekura, "Designers' Picture Books" by Mr Hiromu Hara, "Swedish Graphic Design" by Mr Takashi Kono, and "Print Design Laboratory: Footprints and Image with Copperplate Prints" by Mr Ryuichi Yamashiro, etc. The high quality content was worth reading. The contents were of high quality and well worth reading.

Nakagawa　1959, isn't it? That was around the time I entered university. Did you specialise in design from that time onwards, Mr Katzumie?

ー　According to its chronology, in 1960, the year after the magazine was launched, it "helped promote the holding of Japan's first "World Design Assembly" (11-16 May, International Hall, Tokyo Sankei Kaikan)". He then "formed friendships with Herbert Bayer, Otl Aicher, Müller Brockmann, Max Huber, Saul Bass, Hans Gugelot and others who came to Japan for the conference, and used them as a springboard for subsequent international exchanges". "He was called to the Design Advisory Group for the Olympic Games Tokyo, was involved in the nomination competition for the symbol mark (the Yusaku Kamekura proposal was adopted) and later, as chair, finalised the criteria for the design policy for the Tokyo Games".
Mr Katzumie was passionate about mountain climbing since he was a high school student, became a member of the Japanese Alpine Club at the age of 22, and contributed articles to mountain magazines, etc. In 1941, at the age of 32, he joined the Research Institute of Industrial Arts as a contract worker, wrote art and design reviews, and gradually entered the design world from there.

Nakagawa　1941 was the year I was born. That was the year the war started. I am amazed that you were thinking about design at that time.

ー　Mr Katzumie was fluent in English and German, so perhaps he was looking at the state of design in the world and thought that this is what Japan had to do. Among the archive materials, there are some valuable Bauhaus books. Mr Katzumie's chronology contains the entire history of post-war design, including the Olympic Games Tokyo, the World Design Assembly and the Japan World Exposition, so this is another valuable resource in the history of design.

Meeting Masaru Katzumie, a giant in the design world

ー　Before we ask about the relationship between Nakagawa Chemical and Mr Katzumie, may I ask you to explain a little about Nakagawa Chemical's company?

Nakagawa　Nakagawa Chemical was originally a signboard shop called Nakagawa-do, founded in 1936, and I grew up surrounded by craftsmen from childhood. In the world of signboard shops, it is said that it takes 10 years of training just to draw a single line with a brush, and the craftsmen practised by writing on old newspapers every day. I started helping out in the family business when I was in high school. After that, I began to think about the future and whether it would be possible to create materials that would be useful to all sign makers. This is because it takes a mind-boggling number of years to become a full-fledged sign maker. Then, in a change of mindset, we wondered if it would be possible to make letters by simply cutting with a ruler on the coloured material instead of paint. I talked to my father, and he unexpectedly agreed. From there, through a process of trial and error, "Cutting Sheet®", a material that can be cut and pasted, was born.

ー　It's amazing that you were able to develop your own material.

Nakagawa　At first it wasn't very popular and we had a lot of trouble getting it into use, but from 1975 it began to be used for signs on national railways, airports and public facilities, and gradually it began to attract attention. When I developed this material, I wanted to enrich people's lives by adding a beautiful colour to the city. I wondered if there was any good way to ensure that the material could be used beautifully without spoiling the cityscape, so I consulted my friend Mr Tsuneyo Kamata, who advised me that it would be a good idea to hold a design award. Mr Kamata was a member of the Japan Sign Design Association. I thought that a design award was a good idea, where good things are created through competition. When I said that it would be good if one of the big names joined the jury to further raise the profile of the Cutting Sheet®, Mr Kamata said, "If Mr Masaru Katzumie accepts, it would be a design award with international citizenship", to which I lightly replied, "Great, I'll go and see him". I knew nothing about the design world or Mr Katzumie, so I did some research before meeting him and was surprised to find out that Mr Katzumie was a very important person who was the general producer of the 1964 Olympic Games Tokyo, and I suddenly felt uneasy.

ー　When did you meet Mr Katzumie, and how old were you and Mr Katzumie each?

Nakagawa　The first CS Design Award was held in 1982, and I met him about two years before that. I was 39 and Mr Katzumie was 71, about 30 years apart, and he was about the same age as my father. Recently, I found out that Mr Ryuichi Hamaguchi, the chairman of the Japan Sign Design Association, had made a phone call to Mr Katzumie in advance. He said, "Nakagawa is going to go now, so listen to him about one thing". Last year, I met Mr Kamata for the first time in a long time, and I was very sorry to hear that. If I were to ask such a highly successful general producer of the Tokyo Olympics to chair the jury for my company's awards, as a young man in his 40s, he would not readily accept the job. Knowing this fact brought tears to my eyes. Mr Hamaguchi had been a big supporter of Cutting Sheet® for some time, saying that it might be interesting to use it as a material that floats in space, such as on glass surfaces.

ー　According to the chronology of "Graphic Design" mentioned earlier, in 1979, the year before he met you, when Mr Katzumie was 70 years old, he was an advisor to the Japan Graphic Designers Association and moderator of the "Signs, Symbols and Visual Communication" subcommittee at the Aspen International Conference. In 1980, the "Japan Style" exhibition was held at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and he attended the opening ceremony.

Nakagawa　I had no knowledge of such a thing, so I wonder how I managed to visit such an amazing person at that time.

ー　When I read the reviews for the designers in "Masaru Katzumie Chosakusyu", I felt that Mr Katzumie was a kind and warm person, as he wrote messages of support for each and every one of them, but on the other hand, when I read the obituary written by designers in the 94th issue of "Graphic Design", I felt that Mr Katzumie was a very nervous and scary person. How did you feel when you met them in person?

Nakagawa　I had heard rumours that he was a very scary person, but when I actually met him, that was not the case at all, and Mr Katzumie listened to me quietly. I met in the editorial office of Graphic Design" in Hiroo, Tokyo, and there he and the editor, Ms Kazuko Sasaki, were and I spoke to them. I told them that I wanted to create a design award and wondered if they could help me with that, and I told them three things I wanted. One is that the material was developed to beautify the city, so I want the award to encourage good work in order to promote the correct use of the material, which draws out its inherent power. The second is that I wanted to contribute to the industry as a whole, so materials from other manufacturers are also eligible for the award. Instead, I wanted to name the award the CS Design Award after Cutting Sheet®, and leave the rest to Mr Katzumie. He told me that "I could take on the job", but that "I would find it difficult to have a long relationship with you as I am over 70, but "I could help him with the launch of the design award". He also advised me that after about three competitions, it would be better to rethink the project and formulate a firm policy for the future, as there is another part of the material that is not clear what kind of power and potential it has.

ー　CS Design Award trophy was designed by Mr Takenobu Igarashi, can you tell us how it came about?

Nakagawa　Since we were creating such an award, we thought it would be better to have some kind of symbolic trophy, so we consulted Mr Katzumie, who said, "Why don't you go to Mr Takenobu Igarashi? ". Later I visited Mr Igarashi's office in Aoyama, Tokyo. I told him, "After consulting with Mr Katzumie, we decided to create this kind of award, and we want to make a trophy for it". Mr Igarashi said, "I think it should be something that designers like us would be happy to have on our desks, without the company name in the foreground and without an advertising feel". I said, "Of course, fine" and left it entirely to them. When I saw the finished product I was very impressed - it was a trophy that looked like a piece of sculpture, with a CS motif and two C-shaped objects that rotated to form the letter S.
The first CS Design Award was held on 19 June 1982. As for the jury, there was no specific recommendation from Mr Katzumie, so Mr Kamata and I discussed it with him and decided on the jury. Mr Katzumie was the jury chairman, and the jury members included Mr Kamata as a member of the jury, as well as Mr Koji Kitayama, director of the Japan Sign Design Association, Mr Hideya Takamura, director of the Japan Commercial Environment Designers Association, Mr Seiji Fujishiro, shadowgraph artist, and print artists.

Scenes from the CS Design Award jury meeting. From left to right: Koji Kitayama, Director of the Japan Sign Design Association; Hideya Takamura of the Japan Commercial Environment Designers Association and Masaru Katzumie.
Photo courtesy of Nakagawa Chemical Inc.

ー　Since the material was to be cut, you chose shadow puppet and print artists as members of the jury. What kind of works received awards in the first edition?

Nakagawa　The first grand prix-winning work used the walls of the Sony Building, which was a landmark in Ginza. Until then, banner advertisements like banners had been the mainstream, but this work made use of the characteristics of Cutting Sheet®, which can be peeled off and replaced in a short period of time, and the design was changed three times over a period of three months. On this occasion, the work was not done on scaffolding, but on a gondola from above, which was then affixed to the wall surface. I think Mr Katzumie saw the entries for the first competition and was struck by their suitability for graphic design and CI, and when the second competition was held in 1983, Mr Hideya Takamura was the jury president and graphic designer Mr Kazumasa Nagai was on the jury, and the CI work came in second place. And with the CI boom at the time, Cutting Sheet® grew rapidly.

Winner of the first CS Design Award.
Photo courtesy of Nakagawa Chemical Inc.

Konuma　I think one of the advantages of the Cutting Sheet® is that it is possible to send materials all over Japan and change them at the same time on the same day, for example when changing a bank's CI. The market for Cutting Sheet ® expanded rapidly in response to the trends of the times. It is a pity that Mr Katzumie was not able to see the subsequent development.

Supporting the continuation of Graphic Design magazine

ー　I heard that Mr Katzumie passed away suddenly.

Nakagawa　It was June 1983 when Mr Kazumasa Nagai was chosen as the chairman of the third jury, and Mr Katzumie passed away suddenly on 10 November of that year. We were at a loss because it had only been a year and a half since we launched the CS Design Award, but we felt indebted to Mr Katzumie and Ms Sasaki for their cooperation in launching the CS Design Award and for the many design studies they had given us. So I decided to help Mr Katzumie to continue his first magazine, "Graphic Design", and I offered Ms Sasaki that Nakagawa Chemical would pay the rent and other operating expenses for a while for the room in Katzumie's house where the editorial office and materials were located.

ー　So that's what was going on. I (Kubota) was a close friend of Ms Kazuko Sasaki before she died, and often visited his editing room in Hiroo. There were many books and other materials related to graphic design stored there, and I was secretly worried that it would be very difficult for Ms Kazuko to protect them all by herself after Mr Katzumie's death. Later, I heard from the wind that Nakagawa Chemical kept the documents and materials, but that was not the case.

ー　Have you seen any of the documents?

Nakagawa　No, I have never seen or touched the documents and I have no idea what happened to them. Those materials were kept exactly as they were in the editing room and in his room for a long time.

Konuma　I think my father supported Mr Katzumie and Ms Sasaki with an extraordinary feeling and relationship, as he was a great benefactor of both of them.

ー　You met Mr Katzumie for about two or three years, so you developed an intense relationship with her in those few years of time. How long did you continue to support them?

Nakagawa　After the publication of "Graphic Design" vol. 93, Mr Katzumie passed away and vol. 94 was a memorial issue. The magazine continued until issue 100, published in 1986, after which Nakagawa Chemical provided rent and other support. However, when the bubble burst, my company was in trouble for a while and I told Ms Sasaki about it. I think that is when Ms Sasaki went to see Mr Yukio Ota, a sign and graphic designer, and asked him if he would be willing to accept materials from Tama Art University, where Mr Ota was a professor. I am guessing, though, as I did not hear this directly from Ms Sasaki or Mr Ota.

ー　I would like to ask Mr Ota about the circumstances of the donation at a later date. Did the CS Design Award continue after Mr Katzumie passed away?

Nakagawa　The CS Design Award continues to this day. As Mr Katzumie told us at the time, three years after we started the Design Award, we rethought our plans and changed the organisation. Mr Nagai recommended Mr Yusaku Kamekura as the chairman of the jury for the fourth edition, and the jury members were Mr Kazumasa Nagai, Mr Ikko Tanaka and Mr Shigeo Fukuda, all of whom represent the world of graphic design in Japan.

ー　They are all eminent people, aren't they?

Nakagawa　I really didn't know much about the design world, but now that I think about it, it was a truly wonderful group of people. In the fourth jury, Mr Kamekura suggested that it would be better to include architects and interior designers, so Mr Kiyonori Kikutake and Mr Shigeru Uchida also joined the jury. I was personally close to all of you to the very end.

Konuma　I think my father was very well-liked and loved by everyone. Even when Mr Kikutake and Mr Uchida became unwell, they both said they would go to the Nakagawa Chemical CS Design Award jury, even though they had to drop out of everything else, and they came to the end.

Nakagawa　Yes, it did. The jury meeting was held at the International House of Japan in Roppongi, Tokyo, and when I was seeing Mr Uchida off in a taxi to his home, we talked about many old stories. That was the last time I met Mr Uchida.
I make soba as a hobby, and I used to make soba and bring it to everyone. When Mr Ikko Tanaka received an award, I wanted to present him with a special soba, so I once brought him gold leaf soba. It is common to have gold leaf sprinkled on top, and if it is kneaded in, the colour of the gold is lost, so after some trial and error, I put it on the surface of each strand to create a shiny, glittering soba.

ー　Have you ever met Mr Katzumie, Ms Konuma?

Konuma　I went to the first CS Design Award, but I was in junior high school at the time and I remember a lot of people gathered there, but unfortunately I don't remember Mr Katzumie. I have many memories of Ms Kazuko Sasaki. After Mr Katzumie passed away, I often visited him in the editorial office, and we had meals together, talked over tea for about three hours, and he helped me a lot with various matters. Ms Kazuko studied design at the Kuwasawa Design School, so he may have met Mr Katzumie, who taught there. I gradually lost contact with him, and when I found out that he had passed away, I attended his farewell party.
The CS Design Award is currently judged by Mr Kenya Hara. The posters are still drawn by Mr Nagai. Each time, we all look forward to deciphering with excitement what kind of animal it is.

Poster for the 23rd CS Design Award
Photo courtesy of Nakagawa Chemical Inc.

ー　We are looking forward to seeing the award-winning works. In the course of this PLAT's coverage, we often hear stories of bereaved families who have kept the documents but are gradually getting older and are wondering what to do with them in the future. I have not been able to find out where. Katzumie's materials were kept for a long time, so it is really wonderful to hear that Nakagawa Chemical has been supporting and protecting them for many years. The materials protected by Nakagawa Chemical belong to Mr Katzumie, but I think they are also a valuable asset to the Japanese design world, and I am sure that Mr Katzumie would be very happy to hear that. Thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedule today to talk to us.

Interview 2

Interview 02：Yukio Ota

Date: 20 April 2024, 11:00-12:16
Method of interview: telephone
Interviewees: Yukio Ota
Interviewers: Aia Urakawa
Writing: Aia Urakawa

Masaru Katzumie's aim was to "design for consumers"

〈INTRODUCTION〉
Mr Yukio Ota is a sign and graphic designer, and was a key figure in the donation of Mr Masaru Katzumie's archive material to the Art Archives Center of Tama Art University (AAC). We asked him about the process and his memories of Mr Katzumie.

From coffee cups to large designer’s furniture

ー　We were recently told by Nakagawa Chemical that Mr Ota and Ms Kazuko Sasaki, editor of "Graphic Design", may have been the ones who donated Mr Masaru Katzumie's archive material to AAC.

Ota　I received a request from Ms Sasaki and made efforts to get it accepted by Tama Art University, where I was a professor at the time.

ー　The "Masaru Katzumie Archive" held at the AAC seemed to consist mainly of books and documents. What else was in the editorial office of "Graphic Design"?

Ota　The editorial office of "Graphic Design" occupied six rooms on one floor of a condominium in Hiroo and housed a vast collection of materials accumulated over the years. As well as books and paper materials, there was also a valuable "Katzumie Collection", which included everything from coffee cups to large pieces of designer furniture and artwork. The furniture was all high-end, including a teak desk and a reception room set. Among them were a couple of Arne Jacobsen "SWAN CHAIR" that I helped purchase at Matsuya Ginza. We used four four-tonne trucks to move that "Katzumie Collection".

ー　Was the furniture donated elsewhere?

Ota　Furniture and other items were donated to Tokyo Zokei University and periodicals to the Printing Museum of TOPPAN. I consulted with Tama Art University about donating the collection of books and paper materials. At the time, Tama Art University had archive material on 12 designers, with Mr Katzumie leading the way in terms of the number of materials.

Meet Masaru Katzumie at ICOGRADA's General Assembly

ー　Did Mr Ota's development of the visual language LoCoS, as well as his work as a sign and graphic designer, have been influenced by Mr Katzumie?

Ota　No, when I studied in Italy, I was so bewildered by the language differences that I researched and developed my own pictograms that could be understood just by looking at them. Apart from that, at the same time, Mr Katzumie was working on the practical application of pictograms at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The founder of isotype (International Pictorial Language) as a visual language was the Austrian sociologist Otto Neurath (1882-1945). More than 40 years before the Olympic Games in Tokyo were held, he devised an isotype for the general public, young and old, that everyone could understand just by looking at it. Inheriting his legacy, Marie Neurath, the wife and head of the Isotype Institute, contributed a memoir in Issue 42 of "Graphic Design" (June 1971), entitled "Otto Neurath and the Isotype", which spans almost half a century from the starting point of the institute. I hope you will enjoy reading it.

ー　I would like to read it. When did Mr Ota first meet Mr Katzumie?

Ota　After completing my postgraduate studies at Tama Art University, I studied at he National Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, Italy, from 1964 to 1966. At that time, I was puzzled by the language differences and concentrated on design research and development of picture language that could be understood just by looking at it. A German teacher told me about ICOGRADA (International Conference of Graphic Design Association), which was founded in the UK, and as there was an overlap with my research topic, I wrote to the organisation and was able to attend. I was the only Japanese among hundreds of attendees at the international congress of graphics professionals from various countries. I also had the opportunity to present my research there.
After that, I was the only Japanese to attend ICOGRADA. It was under these circumstances that Mr Katzumie attended the ICOGRADA General Assembly in Yugoslavia in July 1966 for the first time to give a speech on the "Design Policy for the Olympic Games in Tokyo". That was the first time I met Mr Katzumie, and that night I was treated to dinner by him.
I returned to Japan in the autumn of 1966, and at the end of that year, Mr Katzumie asked me, "Would you like to come to Tokyo Zokei University? ", I was contacted by Mr Katzumie at the end of that year. Tokyo Zokei University opened in April 1966 and Mr Katzumie was instrumental in its establishment. Tokyo Zokei University is located further away from Hachioji Station and I was almost two hours later than the appointed time because I was unfamiliar with the area and did not know how to get there. It was pitch black around us and there was only one light in the window of the school building, and Mr Katzumie was waiting for us in that room. As soon as I arrived, I apologised for being late. Mr Katzumie did not condemn me, and his kindness led me to teach the picture language, pictograms and pictograms I had studied in Italy as a full-time lecturer at the Tokyo Zokei University. Mr Katzumie also recommended me and gave me the opportunity to present the visual language I had researched and developed at the Matsuya Design Gallery in Ginza. In this exhibition I named the picture language I have been researching the LoCoS (Lovers Communication System).

ー　In 1971, Mr Katzumie founded the Pictorial Institute. You were its research director, Mr Ota, and you ran it with Ms Katzube, the editor of "Graphic Design". Could you tell us how that came about and what your activities were?

Ota　The idea to establish the Pictorial Institute came from Mr Katzumie. However, Mr Katzumie was very busy, so the practical work was left to Ms Katsube and myself. The content of our research here was published several times in the article ‘PI News’ (*) in "Graphic Design", which I hope you will find interesting.
Apart from the work of the institute, I continued to research my own pictorial language and pictograms. Issue 42 of "Graphic Design" contains a manuscript I wrote about my development of LoCoS. I have been working on visual language for more than 60 years and continue to do so to this day.
I have one regret. There is a book entitled "Komunikashion no rekishi", written by the British zoologist and geneticist Lancelot Hogben (originally published in 1949, Iwanami Gendai Sosho 1958). But then, for more than 60 or 70 years, there have been no books written on such visual communication, until today. This is a serious situation. When I pleaded with the philosopher and critic Shunsuke Tsurumi to write the rest of the book, he said, "Maybe you should write it", but it is not something I or anyone else could ever do. This time I consulted Mr Katzumie, who said, ‘Oh, I understand’. But then he died suddenly and Mr Tsurumi passed away, and now I am at a loss.

ー　I would have liked to have read Mr Katzumie's book on communication. It is a regret. From your point of view, what was Mr Katzumie like?

Ota　I have known Mr Katzumie for 17 years, since our first encounter with ICOGRADA in 1966. In the days when I was striving to research pictograms, pictorial language, visual language and LoCoS as my life's work, Mr Katzumie did not speak to me as an older person in life, telling me that I was wrong, nor did he scold me, but always spoke to me in a polite way. All the teachers, including Mr Katzumie, pushed me to do what I teach as a full-time lecturer at Tokyo Zokei University, and they let me do it based on their own beliefs.
Mr Katzumie has left behind a wide range of achievements and has gained worldwide recognition. However, what he really, truly wanted to do was to design for people. He felt that he wanted to work on creating designs that were not just for rich people, not just for presentation at exhibitions, but for an unspecified number of people to be able to buy and live happily and contentedly with them, day in and day out.

ー　Mr Katzumie also considered the pictograms (pictograms and symbols) he created for the Tokyo Olympics to be a "cultural asset shared by the world". "I remember making a statement that, with their [the designers’] consent, we would like to make the copyright of those symbols available to the international community, paving the way for their adoption and redesign in subsequent international events. And I named this proposal the "International Relay of Pictorial Words" ("Graphic Design", issue 42). It is precisely because he had this in mind that they are now widely used as pictograms in airports, public buildings, commercial premises, etc., and have become familiar in our daily lives.

Ota　The LoCoS I have developed is also a visual language for consumers, something that anyone can understand when they see it. This research is now in its 64th year, and I hope to continue it as long as I can.

ー　Thank you for your valuable story.

*Graphic Design", "PI News"

Reported and analysed articles from No. 52 (1973/74) to No. 59 (1975), including "Sapporo Winter Olympics Picture Words Survey", "Design guides for railways, tourist guides, drivers, etc.", "Picture words for libraries, industrial maps and caution marks for handling household products", "The design of the Tokyo Station guide map produced by the Pictorial Institute", etc. The article introduces reports and analyses on "The design of the Tokyo Station guide map produced by the Pictorial Research Institute".

(Later, Mr Ota gave us a report describing the circumstances of the donation to AAC. Some excerpts from it are presented below)

Progress report of the "Association for Thinking Together about Masaru Katzumie"

After Mr Masaru Katzumie's death in 1983, the editorial office of "Graphic Design" magazine was left with a collection of books, editorial materials for the magazine, a collection of posters and maps, vintage furniture and household items from Scandinavian modern design. It was called the "Katzumie Collection". With the help of Nakagawa Chemical Chairman Mr Yukiya Nakagawa, the Katzumie Collection was not dispersed, but was preserved for 19 years until 2002, as it was at the time of Mr Katzumie's death in 1983.

In 2002, due to Nakagawa Chemical's internal circumstances and Ms Kazuko Sasaki's wishes, the project was realised by requesting acceptance from Tama Art University via Ota. A list of books and other materials from the Katzumie Collection, prepared by Mr Akio Kanda, who was then a full-time lecturer at Tokyo Zokei University, and a list with market prices were also given to the university.
About ten years later, the decision was made to demolish the museum and library at Tama Art University. The volume of the Katzumie collection was too large to be stored in the warehouse, so he was asked to select the pieces to be discarded. Ota then thought about decentralised storage and asked about 15 advisers for help, and approached Tokyo Zokei University, the Printing Museum of TOPPAN and others about commissioning decentralised storage of some of the materials, and was able to obtain their cooperation. In the future, he hoped that each of them would compile their own databases and apply for national scientific research grants (Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research) to set up an archive as a joint research project.

In 2015, construction of the Tama Art University Art-Theque was completed on the site of the former art museum and library. The Tama Art University Art Archives Center was established on its fifth floor. In 2019, we met with Professor Mr Ichiro Saga from the Department of Graphic Design, postgraduate PhD student Xiaofeng Wang and Art Archives Center staff member Ms Rina Tagawa to ensure that all research materials in the Katzumie Collection are neatly organised.
Under the guidance of Professor Ichiro Saga, Ms Wang submitted her doctoral thesis (in English) on Masaru Katzumie to Tama Art University in March 2020. In addition, Ms Wang is taking the lead in developing a double-structured database for researchers and scholars, which will not only contain the Katzumie Masaru materials themselves, but also allow those who do not know Katzumie Masaru to trace the footsteps of his work.
In 2021, the archive centre informed the public that the material is now available for public access. The method of access to the actual material and the restrictions on users were determined.

"It is thanks to the consideration and cooperation of many people that the Masaru Katzumie Archives project has materialised 38 years after the passing of Mr Masaru Katzumie. These include: Mr Yukiya Nakagawa, Chairman of Nakagawa Chemical, who spared no expense in maintaining a long-term storage space in the former "Graphic Design" Editorial Department in Hiroo; three successive presidents of the Japanese Society for the Science of Design and Mr. Toshino Iguchi of Saitama University, who chaired the Masaru Katzumie Archive Committee established within the Headquarters Secretariat; Tama Art University Chancellor Mr Nobuto Fujitani (formar) + President Mr Shiro Takahashi (formar), Mr Akihiro Kubota, first director of the Art Archives Center, Mr Ichiro Saga, who supervised a Chinese PhD student Ms Wang Xiaofeng's "Masaru Katzumie research" for three years and was awarded a doctorate last year, Ms Rina Tagawa, who has been an accurate bridge between the Art Archives Center and Ota since the beginning, and Tama Art University's I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Mr Noboru Onzo, who consulted with Ota from the very beginning in his capacity as General Affairs Department + Research Support Department (at the time) + Library Officer. Ota would also like to thank Mr Toshiharu Oikawa, Ms Miharu Nakayama, Ms Atsuko Suzuki and Mr Kiyoshi Onodera of Yagumokikaku for their cooperation in editing and sending this report of the "Association for Thinking Together about Masaru Katzumie". Thank you very much indeed." (Yukio Ota)

Enquiry:

Tama Art University Art Archives Center
https://aac.tamabi.ac.jp