PREVIEW MILAN SALONE 2008

NEOREAL: The Design World Created by Canon

Milan Triennale

16-21 April 2008



In an exhibition at the Triennial, 3 brilliant minds representing the new creative panorama of the Rising Sun interpret the digital technology of Canon at the service of Japanese art and culture.

The exhibition goes beyond the everyday functionality of Canon printers and places the accent on avant-garde technology that proves capable of reinterpreting the dimensions of space and time in a new reality: NEOREAL, combining tradition with the contemporary.

NEOREAL, the perfect coexistence of traditional and modern, is structured into three sections.

Tsuzuri, the section that passes on heritage, with two decorative screens and a sliding paper wall, faithful replicas of major works of the Japanese tradition, on display for the first time outside Japan and reproduced thanks to Canon technology as part of the Tsuzuri project, an important initiative that aims to conserve the Japanese cultural heritage. We are referring specifically to Yatsuhashi-zu-byobu (Eight-Planked Bridge) by Ogata Korin from the Edo period (1615-1868), Roubai-zu-fusuma (The Old Plum) by Kano Sansetsu from the Edo period (1615-1868) and Shorin-zu-byobu (Pine Trees) by Hasegawa Tohaku from the Momoyama period (1568-1603), coming from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Tokyo National Museum.

In the Ikasu section, which explores new expressive languages for Canon, stylist Tamae Hirokawa and architect Junya Ishigami will use large-format printers that have made it possible to reproduce the images referred to above in a multi-sensory installation.

Finally, Waza, the art of technology, will be a space for the interactive demonstration of Kyuanos technology, the very latest in colour management. This is a section to be experienced personally in a “hands-on” way.



The Tsuzuri Project

The programme for the conservation of the Japanese cultural heritage, known as the TSUZURI project, which sees the participation of Canon and Kyoto International Culture Foundation, aspires not only to conserve Japanese cultural and artistic production, but also to facilitate its diffusion.

A complex task, only made possible thanks to the modern technology of Canon, complemented by hand crafting techniques such as the insertion of gold foil, generates a replica, an actual scale reproduction of the past. Reappropriation, recontextualization of an important cultural memory: I copy, I preserve, I value the past, I make it accessible to more people. I transcend epochs, I generate curiosity and I reach a huge audience, passing on Japanese art.

The ambitious objective of Tsuzuri is “to replicate” 15 of the most important Japanese works of art, in three years: 2007-2010.



The three “creatives” of NEOREAL



Tamae Hirokawa, a stylist known for his collaboration with Miyake and for creating the Somarta clothing range. In 2006 he created Soma Design, a highly versatile agency combining graphics, fashion and the visual arts.

Junya Ishigami, an architect known for his incisive and innovative design -some of his pieces are in the permanent collection of the Centre Pompidou - and exhibition layout designs, including Lexus at the Milan Salone 2005 and participation in the next Biennale in Venice, which reinterpret Canon technology and combine aesthetic sensibility and technological innovation, a sensory and emotional experience.

Hikaru Mori, an eclectic designer and architect, lives in Milan. Among other things, he has designed a lighting system, featured at the last Salone, which cites and reworks Japanese aesthetic canons together with the more Western influences of his everyday context.