Country: Japan

Japanese graphic design history through scanned and collected artefacts and articles based on modernism, designers, and the evolution of visual communication in Japan.

Japanese graphic design in the postwar era produced some of the most remarkable work anywhere in the world. A fusion of European modernism with Japanese visuals designed by designers including Yūsaku Kamekura, Ikko Tanaka, Kazumasa Nagai, and Kiyoshi Awazu. The archive holds profiles of Japanese designers alongside scanned covers of Idea magazine, Graphic Design (Japan), and the Annual of Advertising Art in Japan.

Graphic Design from Country: Japan

Articles Related to Japan

Membership from £2.49/month unlocks articles researched and inspired by the artefacts in the collection.

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130 Kantō, Chūbu and Tōhoku Lottery Tickets, 1966 – 1971

Regional Histories, Ephemera, Illustration, Members Only Content

130 Kantō, Chūbu and Tōhoku Lottery Tickets, 1966 – 1971

A collected visual record of the Kanto, Chubu and Tohoku Lottery tickets.

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84 Tickets from the Rural Medical Care Promotion Lottery, Japan, 1974–82

Illustration, Ephemera, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

84 Tickets from the Rural Medical Care Promotion Lottery, Japan, 1974–82

A collected visual record of the first eight years of Japan’s Rural Medical Care Promotion Lottery.

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Another 50 Japanese Lottery Tickets

Regional Histories, Ephemera, Illustration, Members Only Content

Another 50 Japanese Lottery Tickets

A continuation of my last article: 50 tickets from Japan spanning nearly 50 years (1956–2004). This time it's another 50, spanning 50 years, 1956–2006.

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50 Japanese Lottery Tickets

Ephemera, Illustration, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

50 Japanese Lottery Tickets

50 tickets from Japan spanning nearly 50 years (1956–2004).

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Advertising in Japan, 1960. An Overview of Graphic Design from Japan

Advertising Design, Design Archive Feature, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Advertising in Japan, 1960. An Overview of Graphic Design from Japan

An overview of Graphic Design from Japan from the year 1960, complemented by 50 scanned images from Annual of Advertising Art in Japan 1960 (Bijyutu Shuppan Sha, 1960).

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Tadashi Ohashi. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1916 – 1988

Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Tadashi Ohashi. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1916 – 1988

Tadashi Ohashi was at the forefront of Japan's postwar design movement, with his illustrations widely celebrated. In 1952, he became the chief designer for Meiji Seika Confectionery, producing some of his most renowned work.

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Ryuichi Yamashiro. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1920 – 1977

Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Ryuichi Yamashiro. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1920 – 1977

Ryuichi Yamashiro (山城隆)  was a Japanese graphic designer and artist, born in Osaka in 1920. He belonged to the same generation of pioneering Japanese designers as Kohei Sugiura, Kiyoshi Awazu, Yoshio Hayakawa, Yūsaku Kamekura, Kazumasa Nagai, and Ikko Tanaka.  

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Kiyoshi Awazu. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1929 – 2009

Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Kiyoshi Awazu. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1929 – 2009

Kiyoshi Awazu (粟津) was a renowned Japanese graphic designer, known for his contributions across various creative fields including poster design, architecture, set design, filmmaking, and illustration. His unique style was commissioned by theatre groups, design and architecture magazines and various organisations for the covers of book covers and posters.

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Key Designers Associated with Country: Japan

Explore designers central to Japanese graphic design including Yusaku Kamekura, Ikko Tanaka, Shigeo Fukuda, Kiyoshi Awazu, Tadanori Yokoo, and Hiroshi Ohchi. See also Japanese Modernism and 1960s graphic design history.

Artefacts Associated with Japan

Idea 412, 2026

From the graphic design archive:

Idea 412, 2026

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 2026
Idea 413, 2026

From the graphic design archive:

Idea 413, 2026

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 2026
Idea 414, 2026

From the graphic design archive:

Idea 414, 2026

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 2026
Shufu no Tomo, Vol 23, No. 5, Supplement, 1939

From the graphic design archive:

Shufu no Tomo, Vol 23, No. 5, Supplement, 1939

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1939
Shufu no Tomo, Vol 20, No. 2, Supplement, 1936

From the graphic design archive:

Shufu no Tomo, Vol 20, No. 2, Supplement, 1936

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1936
Shufu no Tomo, Vol 23, No. 1 Supplement, 1939

From the graphic design archive:

Shufu no Tomo, Vol 23, No. 1 Supplement, 1939

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1939
Commercial Design of Japan, Seigensha Art Publishing, 2006

From the graphic design archive:

Commercial Design of Japan, Seigensha Art Publishing, 2006

  • Format: Book
  • Year: 2006
Showa Modern – Signs and Store Designs, 1920s–30s, Seigensha, 2025

From the graphic design archive:

Showa Modern – Signs and Store Designs, 1920s–30s, Seigensha, 2025

  • Format: Book
  • Year: 2025
Quarterly Design No. 93, Autumn 1973 (Issue No. 167)

From the graphic design archive:

Quarterly Design No. 93, Autumn 1973 (Issue No. 167)

  • Format: Magazine
  • Designer/s: Ikuyoshi Shibukawa
  • Year: 1973
Quarterly Design No. 16, Winter 1976 (Issue No. 180)

From the graphic design archive:

Quarterly Design No. 16, Winter 1976 (Issue No. 180)

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1976
Quarterly Design No. 13, Spring 1976 (Issue No. 177)

From the graphic design archive:

Quarterly Design No. 13, Spring 1976 (Issue No. 177)

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1976

More from Design Reviewed

Members Content

Beyond his books, Dick Bruna's vivid colour and simplified forms found their way onto posters, packaging, murals and stamps, many of which feature in my growing collection.

Members Content

An article on Valentin Zietara , originally in German, published in Gebrauchsgraphik, 10, 1930, written by H K Frenzel translated by E. T. Scheffauer

Members Content

A 1903-1904 article on Die Steglitzer Werkstatt, originally in German, published in Deutsche Kunst und Dekoration, Vol. XIII, October 1903–March 1904.