Because we like it and we feel identified with his style, we have interviewed again YOY taking advantage of the the occasion of the 2016 Milan fair furniture.
YOY is a Tokyo based design studio composed by Naoki Ono, a spatial designer, and Yuki Yamamoto, a product designer. Started in 2011, their design theme is to create a new story between space and objects. As an example, some of the designs which were presented at the fair:
– DEPTH
This is a light in which the lantern in the photo lights up. In addition to the central part of the lantern lighting up, the shadow created by the light illuminates the body of the lantern and the floor, bringing depth to the photo. The structure is simple; behind the photo are a transparent sheet that masks the light, a light-guiding panel, and a LED.
Category : Light
Material : LED, ABS, Acrylic
– CUTOUT
A chair that looks as if it were made by being cut out from a sheet of thin panel.
The backrest transforms into the seat and the front legs of the chair. The frame around the hollow opening in the back of the chair functions as the actual backrest.
Category : Chair
Material : Steel
– PEEL
A wall light that looks as if a corner of a wall were peeling and light was leaking therefrom. OLED is used to make the light source as thin as possible and the electric cable is let to stay along a corner of walls so that it doesn’t stand out. It can be fixed to the wall with a hook.
Category : Wall light
Material : OLED, PMMA
– BLOW
A wall shelf that looks like a paper blowing up in the wind. It is formed by bending A4 size thin steel plates with molds. There are 5 types of shape and they can be used both upside and downside. It can be fixed to the wall with a hook.
Category : Wall shelf
Material : Steel
Manufactured by Pianoprimo an Italian furniture company
– SCRIBBLE
A series of table mats that look like scribbles. Formed by cutting elastomer by the laser cutting machine. We made 2 types of shape for coasters, pot stands and place mats, 6 types altogether.
Category : Table mat
Material : Elastomer
Manufactured by MoMA
– CANVAS
A canvas shaped chair with a drawing of a chair. It can be used by leaning against a wall. A frame made of wood and aluminum is covered by an elastic fabric printed with texture of a canvas and a drawing of chair. There are 3 types of size, a stool, an armchair and a sofa.
Category : Chair
Material : Wood, Aluminum, Elastic fabric
Manufactured by Innermost a UK lighting and furniture company
– PROTRUDE
A tray that doesn’t fall though it looks about to fall. It is fixed to a tabletop with a clip and can be used at any angle as you like. It fits for A4 paper and supposed to be used for coffee cup, stationaries etc.
Category : Tray
Material : Wood, Stainless steel
Prototype
– LIGHT
A series of a table lamp and a floor lamp. When switched on, a shade of light will appear on the wall. There is a LED inside the head of the pole which imitates a socket.
Category : Table lamp, Floor lamp
Material : Aluminum, Plastic, LED
-POSTER
A series of a wall lamp like a A2-sized poster. It is made of a sheet of paper and has a shape of a lamp shade in the middle. It can fixed to a wall easily with tape or pins like a poster and various patterns can be printed on it.
Category : Wall lamp
Material: Paper, LED
Prototype
H- Do you participate in every edition of the fair or was it the first time?
NAOKI- This was our 5th time to participate in Milan Design Week.
H- Feedback of the fair?
NAOKI- We met many manufacturer and press, people from all over the world and there were some talks about next business.
H- What kind of difficulties do you face nowadays?
NAOKI- We are trying to find new style of us beyond what we have made before.
H- Design and fashion are closer every time.
NAOKI- We al ways seeking what we have never seen before. That means we try to create our style.
H- Do more designers of the fair have the same style as you, using the design with optical illusion?
NAOKI- Sometimes we see designs with optical illusion but I don’t think this increased.
H- Besides the Depth and Cutout, have you presented any other piece? Where can be purchased?
NAOKI- We presented following 7 selected works from the past.
H- What are your future expectations?
NAOKI- We would like to try to design in other category such as jewelry, clothes, architecture etc…
Look for new ways of seeing design is that this pair of young talents get year after year. We will follow their work to see what they surprise us.
