The image shows Asami Sato's atelier.
I want my works to blend into everyday life, yet feature clever colors and shapes. Such a clear intention resides in Asami Sato's works. Despite their relatively simple forms, they possess a complex depth. This, I believe, is the unique tension that Sato creates by consciously moving between the two perspectives of an artist and a designer.
First encounter with the works
She began creating seriously in her second year of high school. While learning the basics of design in the art department, she also devoted herself to self-studying woodblock prints in addition to her assignments. This approach of working across different fields naturally connects to her current style of activity.
At the age of 19, she held an exhibition primarily featuring woodblock prints. There, a person who saw her work commissioned her to design the logo and signage for an Italian restaurant, which became her first step into commercial design. "Works for expression" and "works for use." This experience, where she realized that these two seemingly contradictory things actually share the same root, has flowed through the foundation of her creative work ever since. It might be because of this origin that she continues to engage in both design and expression without leaning too heavily on one or the other.
Materials and production process
Her current creative process begins with drawing original pieces on Japanese paper with sumi ink, or on Western paper with acrylic paints. Following the tradition from her woodblock print days, Japanese paper and sumi ink are still indispensable art materials for her. She particularly favors thick Japanese paper made in Tottori.
After drawing the original, she moves to the digital realm, combining parts and adjusting color balance to complete a single image. She first finishes a large image digitally, then trims it to bring it closer to completion. The combination of colors and the visible balance are particularly important, and she spends the most time on this process. She lets it rest for a few days, then re-examines it with an objective eye. This "pause" is a crucial step that determines the quality of the work, she says. The combination of simple and universal shapes brings a unique rhythm to her work.
Sato's favorite art materials
Having two perspectives
The subjective perspective of an artist absorbed in expression, and the objective perspective of a designer who grasps the situation. This back and forth is her rhythm and guiding principle. Having had many opportunities to interact with people who made their living from their sensibilities since childhood, she has been conscious of not keeping her ideas and thoughts merely subjective, but of accurately communicating them when needed. This attitude has led to diverse work in spatial design, murals, packaging, and logos, and she has handled numerous commissions from major companies both domestically and internationally.
She names Ettore Sottsass and Shiko Munakata as creators who have influenced her. The former was a designer who lightly crossed the boundaries between product and art, and the latter was an artist who pioneered a unique world through woodblock prints. In juxtaposing these two, one can sense the breadth of her creative work and what lies at its root.
Receiving from everyday life
Much of her inspiration comes from her walks around town. Not from tourist spots or special places, but simply from everyday moments. And the atmosphere from autumn to winter, she says, forms the foundation of her sensibility. The atmosphere of her works, where organic stillness and boldness coexist like plants, is nurtured by this accumulation.
To those who hold her works
Sato wants people to enjoy the subtle fluctuations in her drawings. What I feel, having spent a long time with her works, is their flexibility and strength: they blend into a room as you display them, yet continue to assert their presence. The calculated boldness of her work captures and holds one's attention.
Click here to see Asami Sato's works
