Silver Print and Published Media Design · 2023
Kuwasawa Design School 2022 Guidebook
- A' Design Award 2023 Silver Winner in Print and Published Media Design
- Awarded April 15, 2023
- CLIENT: Kuwasawa Design School
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 586,159
- Verification code 9784475B51 · Verify this award
About Kuwasawa Design School 2022 Guidebook
School guide for Kuwasawa Design School, the first design school in Japan. In recent years, online communication has been increasing, and the line between reality and virtual is becoming blurry. In such a situation, The design team pursued the possibility of design by expressing what was recognized as digital with analog (paper and print). At first glance, it looks like an ordinary book, but the animation works when it is pulled out. The guidebook is divided into separate volumes so that people can enjoy it in various ways. They aimed for a digital expression using typography.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- They created a "Kinetic book" that is different from other school guides. They used analog methods (paper and print) to recreate digital images. At first glance, it looks like an ordinary book, but when the book is pulled out, the animation works naturally and surprises the person who sees it. The guidebook is divided into separate volumes so that people can enjoy it in various ways.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Dimensions Width:182mm x Height:257mm x Depth:25mm
- Tags
- Kuwasawa Design School, Slit animation, Scanimation, There There, Kazune Watanabe
- Production Technology
- The case is slit, and the animation is worked by the expression of the cover partially visible through the slit. Although the cover appears to be printed only in black, it is not printed in one black color but in a combination of special colors. The slightest deviation of the color plates creates an optical illusion, reproducing the flicker of RGB colors that can be seen when the monitor is magnified. Under normal conditions, the colors are barely perceptible, but when the slit is passed through, the colors appear as a frame-by-frame feed.
- Design Challenge
- Slit animation has a narrower range of expression and is extremely difficult to express dynamically compared to ordinary animation. After more than 100 prototypes, they aimed for a digital expression using typography.
- Project Duration
- The project started from July 2020 to April 2021 and was released in Japan in May 2021.
- Operation Flow
- The target audience is students who want to study design. The objective was to reach as many people as possible and get them interested in design. On social media, the information was shared by many media in Japan and overseas, an unprecedented spread as a school guidebook. The number of requests increased compared to previous years, increasing the school's recognition dozens of times over.
- Research
- As the coronavirus spreads around the world, society has shifted to a teleworking work style. And communication has shifted from face-to-face to online. Now that people see two-dimensional expressions online as a matter of course, There There wanted to redefine the value of the existence of objects. They created this design with the idea of designing an object that exists with a digital look and the sense of strangeness and unreality that comes with it.
- Inspiration
- School guide for Kuwasawa Design School, the first design school in Japan.
In recent years, online communication has been increasing, and the line between reality and virtual is becoming more and more blurry. In such a situation, There There pursued the possibility of design by expressing what was recognized as digital with analog (paper and print).
For students who are about to study design, they aimed not only to convey basic information about the school's curriculum and facilities but also to serve as a medium for designers to experience and recognize design as something exciting for the first time they are exposed to it.
Colors of Kuwasawa Design School 2022 Guidebook
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Innovative Print and Brand Communication Design
We transform ideas into tangible experiences through experimental print design and strategic brand communications. Our Tokyo-based studio blends digital innovation with analog craftsmanship, creating memorable publications and brand materials that captivate audiences.
G0E23 ShopDesign Interview about Kuwasawa Design School 2022 Guidebook
I design with a focus on the near future, considering how things have evolved from the past to the present and how they are likely to change in the future. I strive to come up with answers that were not possible in the past, aiming to provide innovative solutions.
I placed great importance on capturing the impression that one would feel when holding this piece. Above all, I wanted it to evoke a surprised and amazed reaction.
Currently, it has been materialized in the form of a book, but I envision expanding it on a larger scale to create an even more exciting experience. My goal is to have an exhibition by the end of this year. I would like to showcase it not only in Japan but also, if possible, overseas.
The concept itself took about 1-2 days. However, determining the most suitable form of expression from there took approximately six months.
The design was commissioned by the design school, "Kuwasawa Design School." It was created with the intention of being a medium that aspiring designers could first experience and intuitively grasp design.
My designs have not been produced or used by other companies. However, in the future, I plan to create original works using the same approach and introduce them for sale.
All creators and designers who evoke a sense of science fiction.
All those who aspire to become designers in the future.
It embodies digital expression to the extent that it is often mistaken for a digital product.
I used Adobe CC, specifically Indesign and Illustrator.
The intentional arrangement and expression of typography.
I collaborated with colleagues internally while developing and validating the design.
It involves recognizing the strengths of both analog and digital approaches and reaffirming their respective positions.
In researching the appropriate expressions for creating moving animations within a print format.
To achieve the complexity and dynamism of the expression, we created and tested approximately 100 different variations.
I felt that the way of thinking and creating in Japanese design was different. By winning an award in an international design competition, I aimed to gain social credibility.
Grand Interview about Kuwasawa Design School 2022 Guidebook
My starting point was a desire to ensure the school prospectus would not merely be a booklet for reading information. Beyond simply explaining Kuwasawa Design School, I wanted the publication to be something that allows readers to physically experience what design is from the very moment they pick it up.Typically, a school prospectus is a relatively passive medium where pages are turned to read text and view photographs. In this project, however, I wondered if I could challenge the very premise that "a book is a static object" and "printed matter does not react when touched." As the reader touches and slides the booklet, the once-static image begins to move. I aimed for that moment of surprise to serve as the initial threshold into Kuwasawa’s approach to design education.In the initial stages, I explored how close we could bring the analogue medium of paper to the sensation of a digital interface. I was not seeking to express an analogue warmth or nostalgia; rather, I attempted to generate—solely through printing and binding—the sensation of swiping a tablet screen, where information shifts in tandem with the movement of one’s fingers.The slit animation technique was the most appropriate approach to realize this concept. By moving a page integrated with slits, multiple underlying images appear in sequence, making the printed, static graphic appear to move. Though it utilizes neither a power source nor a screen, the book responds instantly to the reader’s hand movements, directly linking physical manipulation with visual transformation.Once the slit animation was chosen, it became necessary to redesign the entire booklet around this mechanism. Instead of merely adding a gimmick to a single page, my team scrutinized which direction and how far the pages should move, the speed at which the images would transform, and whether the book could be operated naturally while holding it. We calibrated the graphic and physical structures simultaneously—including the width and intervals of the slits, the division of the underlying images, the thickness and friction of the paper, and the ease of movement after binding.Furthermore, if the kinetic effect became overly complex, the act of understanding the mechanism itself would become the ultimate goal. What I emphasized was a state where users could interact intuitively and experience an immediate sense of surprise without requiring detailed instructions. I sought a balance that retains the tactile feedback of physically moving paper while possessing the immediacy of a digital interface.Ultimately, this school prospectus became not just a booklet that explains Kuwasawa, but a design experience that is completed through the reader's own action. Before reading the information, one touches, moves, and experiences surprise. Through this experience, I wanted to convey that questioning the premises of familiar objects and forging new relationships is itself an act of design.
The most significant technical challenge was to make the printed typography appear to move while simultaneously ensuring it functioned rigorously as a piece of graphic design.Through over one hundred prototypes, my team sought to strike a delicate balance: creating a dynamic transformation that surprises the user upon touch, while maintaining the graphical integrity required for a school prospectus cover when in its static state. Rather than making decisions solely on-screen, we iterated by producing physical mockups—touching and shifting them to validate the experience.Another crucial objective was determining how close we could bring the slit animation—which typically functions as a simple, looping visual effect—to an intuitive user interface. The typography responds instantly to the act of a person touching and moving the book. Our goal was not merely to exhibit an animation, but to design an experience where physical interaction and visual shift are directly linked.Ultimately, my priority was not to showcase a technically complex mechanism, but to ensure that anyone picking up the booklet would naturally interact with it without reading instructions, experiencing the typographic transformation the exact moment they moved it. The surprise occurs before the user even becomes conscious of the underlying gimmick. To realize this simple, intuitive experience, over one hundred physical trials were absolutely essential.What this production process revealed is that in kinetic printed matter, graphics, material properties, finishing, and binding cannot be treated as separate phases. The very structure of the book serves as the interface,
When I was entrusted with designing the school prospectus as an alumnus, I decided to candidly express the core design values I hold today. This choice stemmed from my belief that these very values were cultivated and forged during my time studying at Kuwasawa. Instead of explaining the institution from an outsider's perspective, I wanted to manifest my current creative philosophy through the prospectus itself.What I learned at Kuwasawa was not to accept preexisting formats as they are, but to think critically, engage with my own hands, and seek new methodologies through continuous trial and error. For this project, rather than mimicking the established formats of conventional school prospectuses, I chose to reconsider the very nature of the book as a medium.I believe that Kuwasawa's pioneering spirit as Japan’s first design school is not demonstrated by visually referencing its historical imagery. Rather, it lies in the attitude of questioning established conventions and continuously challenging oneself to create new expressions required by the times. By presenting my own design without reservation, I believed it would ultimately convey both the education I received at Kuwasawa and the true essence of what the school stands for today.
The RGB flicker effect is not a result of digital manipulation; rather, it harnesses a phenomenon generated inherently through the printing process.Instead of printing solely in black, colors such as cyan and magenta were integrated, with the composition output directly across multiple plates. When observed with the naked eye from a standard distance, the graphic appears almost completely solid black. However, when magnified through a loupe, one can discern that cyan and magenta emerge as minute misregistrations around the perimeter of the black ink.While this color registration shift is nearly imperceptible in a static state, once intertwined with the kinetic movement generated by the slit animation, it is perceived as a flicker effect—as if RGB colors are flashing for a split second.Rather than making colors emit light digitally, I generated a luminous phenomenon exclusively through analogue print, exploiting the layering of printing plates and the human eye's perception when capturing motion.
Over the past decade, I feel that the values surrounding media have fundamentally shifted. In Japan, it was once a given that everyone owned a television and received information from the exact same screen, but that dynamic has changed dramatically today.At a time when how we receive information and how we engage with media are in flux, I felt there was no need to constrain the concept of a book within its conventional definition.Rather than positioning digital and print in opposition to each other, I explored how the physical medium of the book could accommodate our bodily sensations—which have become thoroughly accustomed to touching and swiping screens. The departure point for this project was an attempt to redefine the book: not only as a publication meant for reading, but as an interface meant for touching, moving, and discovering transformation.Precisely because we live in an era where values and the roles of media are shifting, I wanted to reconsider what a book truly is,
While the school prospectus for Kuwasawa takes the physical form of a book, I intended from the outset that the experience should not remain entirely self-contained within the object itself. In addition to the tactile experience when holding the actual artifact, the piece was deliberately engineered so that its kinetic quality could be instinctively communicated through social media and web platforms.The phenomenon of a static printed object transforming through manual manipulation is powerful enough to instantly convey its underlying mechanism and sense of surprise, even within a brief video clip. Upon completing the design, I recognized that this expression possessed a rare, distinctive quality on a global scale—one that held the potential to resonate across boundaries of language and culture.The subsequent widespread sharing of the project, both domestically and internationally, reaffirmed my belief that physical media and digital dissemination are not mutually exclusive. Even for an experience exclusive to the physical artifact, if the core movement and wonder are lucidly defined, they can generate engagement in the digital realm and, in turn, steer people back toward the physical object.What this response revealed is that the value of printed matter does not terminate at the edges of the paper. Rather, it suggests that a physical experience can serve as a catalyst, expanding outward into entirely different media ecosystems.
The primary reason for dividing the prospectus into separate volumes was to categorize the diverse information about the school by content, making it easier for readers to enter from whatever topic sparks their interest. Instead of forcing them to read about the curriculum, student life, and admissions in a predetermined sequence, the structure allows readers to autonomously select the specific booklet they need.Furthermore, this multi-volume format was not implemented solely for the purpose of organizing information. I intended to transform the very acts of pulling out, selecting, arranging, and comparing the booklets into the core experience of the prospectus itself. Even before reading a single page, the reader begins to forge a relationship with the school in their own unique order.Kuwasawa is an environment where students with diverse backgrounds and perspectives gather, each seeking their own individual methodologies. Rather than consolidating the institution into a single, cohesive image within one book, we believed that providing multiple entry points would better reflect the true essence of the school. For prospective students aiming for Kuwasawa, I hoped that this publication itself would serve as their very first design experience—one that allows them to touch upon the joy of making choices and uncovering discoveries.
I do not presume to suggest that this school prospectus represents the evolution of Japanese design education as a whole. However, I do believe it signals one of the fundamental shifts that design education is currently confronting.Kuwasawa possesses a rich heritage of pedagogy rooted in engaging with materials, working with one's own hands, and thinking through physical creation. In producing this prospectus, I utilized conventional techniques such as paper, print, finishing, and binding. Yet, instead of treating them as rigid formats to be preserved, I explored how they could be connected to contemporary sensibilities.Today's students have interacted with smartphones and tablets from an early age, accepting it as second nature that a screen responds immediately to physical movement. Therefore, rather than presenting a paper book as an archaic medium isolated from the digital world, I reconfigured it as an interface where images transform instantly upon touch. While leveraging traditional printing technologies, our goal was to achieve an intuitive immediacy akin to a digital experience.What is required in contemporary design education is not to position tradition and innovation in opposition to each other, but to re-read preexisting techniques and materials from a modern perspective, thereby forging new relationships. Furthermore, it is crucial that students do not merely learn finalized methodologies, but rather formulate their own questions, engage physically, and discover new paths through iterative prototyping.The very production process of this school prospectus became an endeavor to update the practical, hands-on learning inherited at Kuwasawa,
I believe the most significant factor was the project’s resonance on social media. The phenomenon of printed typography shifting through manual manipulation conveyed its mechanism and sense of wonder instantly, even within a brief video clip, leading to widespread sharing both within Japan and internationally. I feel it served as a catalyst for individuals who were previously unfamiliar with Kuwasawa to become aware of the school’s name and its underlying philosophy toward design.Furthermore, recognition in both domestic and international design competitions provided sustained momentum for this visibility. In addition to the immediate curiosity generated via social media, the validation from these external panels expanded public interest beyond the prospectus itself, shifting focus toward Kuwasawa’s pedagogy and its institutional attitude toward design.It is impossible to attribute direct fluctuations in enrollment inquiries solely to this prospectus. However, I am confident it fulfilled a vital role in leaving a powerful impression on prospective students, demonstrating exactly what kind of values Kuwasawa upholds and the nature of the design education it delivers.
I firmly believe that printing still holds immense, untapped potential. The slit animation technique employed in this project, while rooted in a simple principle, is a remarkably profound form of expression that yields diverse possibilities through its interplay with typography, color, kinetic movement, material properties, and the human body.Moving forward, I intend to investigate this mode of expression even more deeply. However, rather than merely replicating the same visual effect, my focus will be on validating how it can be developed into entirely new experiences by altering the scale of the medium, the choice of materials, the viewing distance, and its relationship with the surrounding space.Rather than pursuing the technology as an end in itself, I want to slightly expand the conventional definition of printed matter beyond something simply meant to be "seen" or "read." My goal is to continue exploring its possibilities as a dynamic medium designed for people to touch, move, and discover.