Jun 27, 2021
The red cedar bench tells 10 years’ worth of stories. The utilitarian seat was among the first pieces created by Ishinomaki Laboratory, a DIY furniture project founded by architect Keiji Ashizawa to empower locals in disaster-hit northeast Japan in the aftermath of the 2011 tsunami.
For much of the past decade, through sunshine and snow, the bench its solid simplicity and functional lines designed by Taiji Fujimori has sat outside Ishinomaki Laboratory’s workshop in Miyagi Prefecture, providing a welcome resting place for staff.
And now, the bench, organically grained and dark gray from the passing of time, is one of countless items on display at a new Tokyo exhibition celebrating a decade of Ishinomaki Laboratory, charting the project’s dynamic evolution from a local public workshop to a respected global design brand, one still firmly rooted in the goal of social impact.