Nendo: A Big Book of Small Ideas

He named his firm ‘Nendo’, the Japanese word for modelling clay; he uses manga-like sketches to illustrate his design concepts; and he creates some of the most imaginative furniture in the world: he is Oki Sato, one of Japan’s most prolific designers. At any given moment, he has hundreds of projects in the works – architecture, interiors, furniture, tableware, and more. ‘There is nothing I would not design,’ says Sato.

Sato renders his designs with remarkable conceptual clarity. At the outset, he allows his imagination to run wild and then documents his idea with a simple black line drawing – be it a bathroom basin defined by a single, ceramic swirl or a pair of wooden chopsticks that twist together to become one. These 2D images are converted into minimal 3D shapes described with clean outlines and a largely monochrome palette. Like a traditional Japanese ink painting, which constructs an image with just a few brush strokes, Sato extracts the unnecessary and eliminates distraction.

Featuring Sato’s original sketches, full-scale product images and explanatory texts, Project Nendo uncovers and unpicks the designer’s unique creative process, guiding the reader step-by-step through his innovative and playful world to reveal the secrets behind fifty of his inimitable works.