Japanese concept of Kogei in the period between the first world war and the second world war

Japanese concept of Kogei in the period between the first world war and the second world war

AMAGAI, Yoshinori

Article:

In Japan in the period between the First World War and the Second World War, Rokuzo Yasuda defined Kogei in general as applied art industry, while there were three major movements of Kogei: Bijutsu Kogei, Sangyo Kogei, and Mingei. Sangyo Kogei and Mingei were considered to be counter-movements to Bijutsu Kogei. Sangyo Kogei and Bijutsu Kogei, however, were translated by using the same English expression, ‘industrial art’, and the English expression ‘folk craft’ was applied to Mingei. In this paper, focusing on the arguments about Kogei at the time, I suggest that the Japanese concept of Kogei meant not only crafts but also industrial design, and its fundamental aim was to beautify our daily life by unifying beauty and utility. Yasuda’s definition and others’ arguments about Japanese Kogei provided important foundations for the development of the modern design movement, especially industrial design, in postwar Japan.

In Japan in the period between the First World War and the Second World War, Rokuzo Yasuda defined Kogei in general as applied art industry, while there were three major movements of Kogei: Bijutsu Kogei, Sangyo Kogei, and Mingei. Sangyo Kogei and Mingei were considered to be counter-movements to Bijutsu Kogei. Sangyo Kogei and Bijutsu Kogei, however, were translated by using the same English expression, ‘industrial art’, and the English expression ‘folk craft’ was applied to Mingei. In this paper, focusing on the arguments about Kogei at the time, I suggest that the Japanese concept of Kogei meant not only crafts but also industrial design, and its fundamental aim was to beautify our daily life by unifying beauty and utility. Yasuda’s definition and others’ arguments about Japanese Kogei provided important foundations for the development of the modern design movement, especially industrial design, in postwar Japan.

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DOI: 10.5151/despro-icdhs2016-02_011

Referências bibliográficas

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Como citar:

AMAGAI, Yoshinori; "Japanese concept of Kogei in the period between the first world war and the second world war", p-105-109. In: Wong, Wendy Siuyi; Kikuchi, Yuko & Lin, Tingyi (Eds.). <strong>Making Trans/National Contemporary Design History [=ICDHS 2016 – 10th Conference of the International Committee for Design History & Design Studies]</strong>. São Paulo: Blucher, 2016.
ISSN 23186968, DOI 10.5151/despro-icdhs2016-02_011