Koji Iyama

Art Director / Graphic Designer
iyamadesign
Japan

Following his successful years at Nippon Design Centre, Koji founded iyamadesign in 2000.Koji conducts a creative direction that unifies the entire brand, including product planning and development, event planning, space and graphic design. He has received numerous awards, including the D&AD Black Pencil, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity Gold Lion, the SPIKES ASIA Grand Prix, the CLIO AWARDS Gold Award, and the One Show Design Gold Award.

Koichi Kosugi

Art Director
onehappy
Japan

Uncovering his character through the “personification” design, Kosugi works in the fields of creative direction and art direction. Major works include NHK television serial drama “Chimudondon”, SUNTORY “Tokucha”, Japan Post “Tegami no heya”, Chubu Yakuhin “Vdrug”, Shiseido “50 selfies of Lady Gaga”, book design for “TIMELESS Eiko Ishioka and her era”, SUZUKI “HUSTLER”, STARFLYER “Kagayaku hito e”, Nippon Television “Gaki no tsukai ya arahende” and Yellow Magic Orchestra “YMO40”. Kosugi has received a number of domestic and international awards, including the Tokyo ADC Award, JAGDA New Designer Award, D&AD, NY ADC, ONE SHOW and ACC Award. A member of Tokyo ADC, JAGDA and JIFE. A part-time lecturer at the Department of Integrated Design, Tama Art University.

Takafumi Kusagaya

Art Director / Graphic Designer
Kusagaya Design
Japan

Born in 1963. Graduated from Tamagawa University College of Humanities in 1985. Joined Hiromura Design Office in 1989. Founded Kusagaya Design in 1996. Awards include the Asahi Advertising Award Silver Prize in 1994 and 2008, the Asahi Advertising Award Grand Prix in 2009, the JAGDA New Designer Award in 1995, and the Good Design Category Award in 2002 and others.

Chiharu Shimizu

Art Director / Designer / Illustrator
Hakuhodo
Japan

Born in 1983 in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Graduated from the Department of Design, Tokyo University of the Arts in 2006 and joined Hakuhodo. Winner of CANNES LIONS Silver, NYADC Gold, D&AD Bronze, ONE SHOW Gold, ADFEST Grand Prix, AD STRAS Grand Prix and Good Design Award, among others.

Norito Shinmura

Graphic Designer
garden
Japan

Born in Yamaguchi in 1960. Established Shinmura Design Office in 1995. Major works include design for Shiseido and art direction for MUJI’s camp site. Won the Mainichi Advertising Design Award Grand Prix, NY ADC Silver Prize, the Warsaw International Poster Biennale Silver Prize, the International Biennial of Graphic Design Brno Gold Prize, the JAGDA New Designer Award, the Tokyo ADC Award, etc.

Taku Satoh

Graphic Designer
TSDO
Japan

Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts, Department of Design, in 1979, then from its Graduate School in 1981. Worked for Dentsu Inc., before establishing Taku Satoh Design Office (TSDO Inc.) in 1984. Satoh's work includes product development “Nikka Whiskey Pure Malt”, packaging design “LOTTE XYLITOL Gum”, “Meiji Oishii Gyunyu”, graphic design “PLEATS PLEASE ISSEY MIYAKE”, logo design “21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art”, “Kanazawa; National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo”, as well as signage, branding and corporate identity (CI) programs. He provides art direction on the educational channel of NHK Television, Nihongo de Asobo, overall direction for “Design Ah!” and “Design Ah! Neo” on the same channel, and overall direction of “21_21 DESIGN SIGHT”. Exhibitions curated or organized by him include “water”, “JOMONESE”, “Design Anatomy” and “Design Ah!”. His publications include Sosuru Shiko (SHINCHOSHA, 2017), Mark Book (KINOKUNIYA COMPANY, 2022) and Just Enough Design (Chronicle Books, 2022). The president of Japan Graphic Design Association Inc. (JAGDA). A member of Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI). Many prizes include Mainichi Design Awards, the Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts, the Medal with Purple Ribbon by the emperor of Japan.

David Carson

Graphic Designer / Design Director
david carson design
USA

David Carson, an American-born graphic designer, photographer, filmmaker, and mixed media fine artist, is widely recognized for revolutionizing the field of graphic design. From his early endeavors with Transworld Skateboarding to his storied time at Surfer Magazine, followed by influential roles as Art Director for Beach Culture and RayGun during the 1990s, Carson’s unparalleled manipulation of typography and experimental layouts elevated type into an art form, providing a fresh and often controversial expressive approach to storytelling. His disruptive methods challenged conventional norms, garnering him international acclaim and recognition. Named one of Apple’s “top 2 graphic designers in Apples 30 year history” . Carson reshaped the landscape of graphic design, pushing boundaries and expanding possibilities. His enduring legacy includes a Master Class and the prestigious AIGA Gold Medal for design excellence. Notable collaborations with Macallan Whiskey, Carver Skateboards, and involvement in the development of a new skatepark in Dubai underscore his ongoing impact. Beyond print media, Carson’s influence is evident in recent collage and photo exhibitions in New York City and Japan. He continues to inspire designers worldwide, evidenced by his Emmy nomination for the John Coltrane Box Set Design, as well as his contributions to branding for Shift Clean Energy and a clothing col-lab with Stussy taking archival imagery using David’s signature visual language.

Wei Hong

Creative Directo
Day Day Up Design Consultants
China

Born in Hunan, China in 1971. Member of Alliance Graphique Internationale, JAGDA, JTA, and Shenzhen Graphic Design Association. The Creative Director of Day Day Up Design. Over the past three decades, Hong has explored design in the Chinese context from the perspective of a literati. He is committed to the research and creation of brands, fonts, books, furniture, ceramics, calligraphy, space, and more. He has made remarkable achievements resulting in winning over 420 international design awards, including Japan Typography Association (Grand Prize and Best Work), Tokyo TDC, New York TDC, One Show Design (Silver Pencil), The Art Directors Club Award (Silver Cube and Bronze Cube), England Design & Art Direction Award (Graphite Pencil and Wooden Pencil), German GDA Design Award, Red Dot Award, iF Design Award, DFA Design for Asia Awards (Gold, Silver, and Bronze), China GDC Design Award (Gold, Silver, and Bronze), China International Poster Biennal (Gold, Silver, and Bronze), and The Most Beautiful Book in China. His published books include ‘Hun’Design, A gift from Hong Wei, Enchantment of Handwriting, Nity-nine, Observing and Mirroring, and HunHun's Notes.

Kaoru Kasai

Art Director
SUN-AD
Japan

Born in Sapporo, Hokkaido in 1949. After working at Bunka Insatsu and Ohtani Design Institute, Kasai joined SUN-AD in 1973. His wide range of works include advertising work for Suntory, Sony, Seibu Department Store, United Arrows, and Toraya among others, as well as CI, space planning, package design, advertising art for film/theater, and book design. Awards include Mainichi Design Award, Tokyo ADC Grand Prix, Hiromu Hara Award, and JAGDA Yusaku Kamekura Award. He has published Kaoru Kasai Catalogue 1968 (ADP).

Mina Tabei

Art Director / Graphic Designer
MINA TABEI DESIGN
Japan

Born in Saitama, Japan in 1977. After working at Kazunari Hattori Ltd. since 2003, Tabei became independent and established Mina Tabei Design in 2014. Her main fields of work include advertisement, package design, and book design. Major works include “Dear Radiance” (NHK taiga drama), “BLUE GREEN” (Family Mart), “Matisse Exhibition”, Mirai no Genji Monogatari by Nao-Cola Yamazaki, and Tabei’s solo exhibition “LIGHT and FIGURE”. Winner of ADC Award 2019. Specially Appointed Teacher at Tokyo Zokei University and Part-time Lecturer at Joshibi University of Art and Design.