In its fourth year, MONO JAPAN will welcome over 30 exhibitors and offer a jam-packed programme of events at the Lloyd Hotel in Amsterdam over the weekend of 1 to 3 February. This year, the theme will be Get Involved: much more than just an exhibition where visitors merely view things from a distance, MONO JAPAN will offer a special programme with more opportunities to encounter, select, use and promote Japanese contemporary design and craftsmanship.
A diverse selection of exclusive products designed and crafted in Japan will be on sale, from Japanese knives, jewellery, clothes, scarfs, hats, kitchenware, tea, accessories and lifestyle goods. Each room will be decorated and styled by the Japanese makers, who will be present to explain the philosophy behind their products and demonstrate how to use them.
“The Japanese word mono translates to ‘object’ or ‘product’ in English, but it actually encompasses a much broader concept that includes the relationship one has with things, rather than simply owning them,” says MONO JAPAN director Emiko Chujo. “Objects selected for MONO JAPAN are therefore meant to be lived with. With their elegant design and superb material quality, they defy the mundane, bringing joy to the simplest ritual of every day.”
This year, MONO JAPAN will also unveil a room of MONO JAPAN products styled by the Dutch-Japanese designers BCXSY (Boaz Cohen & Sayaka Yamamoto). What’s more, amidst this room of Japanese products spiced up with Dutch creativity, visitors can have their hair and make-up done by stylist Yasu Shoji and have their portrait taken by renowned photographer Shinji Otani, who took this year’s main visual photo.
Visitors will also be able to enjoy Japanese food and drink, including sake, green tea, noodles, and Japanese curry. And, for the first time, MONO JAPAN will also have a satellite venue. This will be at TIME & STYLE, the elegant Japanese furniture and interior store on Marnixstraat. There will be additional participating brands selling products there, which are well worth catching —in addition to the store’s stunning interior products and bonsai collection.
MONO JAPAN will launch a unique collaboration with renowned Dutch fashion designer Bas this year. He will be making customized products using Japanese materials during MONO JAPAN 2019. There will also be a series of workshops at during the event at the Lloyd Hotel, including a masterclass from a knife-sharpening professional, an opportunity to make fermented miso paste from scratch, and a chance to put in an order with a kintsugi artist to mend broken ceramics.
And finally, MONO JAPAN will offer a combo ticket with the COOL JAPAN exhibition at the Tropenmuseum Amsterdam, that will give visitors entry to MONO JAPAN and 50% off the entrance to the Tropenmuseum during the weekend of 1 to 3 February 2019, during which there’ll be Dutch Design meets Cool Japan.
Source: MONO JAPAN
