Subtlety

Quiet, gentle designs that form the background of our lives.

Today's theme is subtlety.

A delicate balance between an object's environment, function and material.

Explore the quiet beauty and potential of subtle designs.

Hello. Welcome to Design Talks Plus, I'm, Andrea Pompilio.

And, I'm Shaula. So, Andy today we are talking about "subtleness."

"Subtleness." It sounds very Japanese.

- Yes.
- It's like a base of culture.

Yeah, that's right.

And you know we have great guest today.

Let's meet product designer, Suzuki Gen.

- Welcome, Suzuki-san!
- Thank you.

Hello.

Let's dive right in - I understand you're currently focused on the Japanese word, "awai."

Yes, "awai" is often translated as 'subtle', but it can also mean 'dim,' 'pale,' or 'blurred.' It has a lot of different meanings.

And you're using it in product designs?

The standard design approach is to make clear-cut products that stand out.

So, "subtle" isn't very popular.

However, I feel there's a lot we can learn from this concept.

So you're studying it.

Yes!

- Sounds fascinating.
- It does.

Let's take a look at some of Suzuki-san's subtle designs.

Suzuki's office is in a quiet, green residential neighborhood.

His beautiful, yet understated designs enjoy enduring popularity, and he's created lifestyle products for many international brands.

What's Suzuki's take on "subtle" designs?

Design is about everyday tools.

Each product exists amid a crowd of other items.

My personal take on subtle designs is something that focuses on building relationships with what's around the product.

There should be a sense of connection.

This is a pen stand.

Of course, it's going to be used for pens and pencils.

Around it you might have tape, or any number of other stationery items.

But there aren't many items that pull all of those different things together.

So that's how I came up with this design.

What's interesting to me is that this shape is the outside of the pen stand.

But it's also the inside shape of a roll of tape.

Its diameter and height are dictated by the shape and height of the tape.

Its form is literally shaped by its environment.

It both stands alone, and disappears when in use.

I feel like that lack of clarity produces a certain kind of subtlety.

Subtle threads connecting product and environment.

This is a bedside lamp designed for a famous bedding manufacturer in the US.

A gentle shape with no complicated buttons.

The lamp melts away into any space, appearing as no more than light itself.

Suzuki's design process is unique.

He deliberately chose to have his office and home side by side.

He takes his prototypes and models into his home so he can explore designs in their actual setting.

I put large items there, or kitchen items here.

I bring items over after work and leave them here while I eat, or watch the kids run around them.

I might forget about them, then catch a glimpse out of the corner of my eye.

When I'm in the office, I'm concentrating on the design itself.

I might make something and think it's turned out quite cool, but then bring it up here and realize it's trying a bit too hard.

Up here, I can look at it as part of a genuine living space.

Once the item fades into my peripheral vision, that's when I know I've got the design right.

That's about the level of presence it should have.

We have some of Suzuki-san's products in the studio with us today.

I believe this is the lamp we saw in the video just now.

Yes, it's a bedside light.

Please try it out.

Let's lower the studio lights.

Good idea.

We turn it upside down?

Yes, like this.

I see, like... oh!

They all turn on?

You can connect them with wirelessly so that just turning one lamp on or off will affect all the lights around the room at once.

Interesting!

So, if I turned this upside down, all the lamps would turn off?

Yes.

Oh!

Oh wow. That works with any of the lamps?

Yes, they're all linked up to work together.

Try rotating yours.

Sure.

Oh, they dim?

Oh wow!

What inspired this?

When I'm half-asleep in a dark bedroom I find it hard to grope about for a little button.

Right.

It's much easier to just control the light directly.

Are you often inspired by your personal experiences?

I am, yes.

I linked up all the lamps because if I'm reading in bed, I don't want to get up to turn off all the other lights.

It's such a pain!

It is!

So if you go to the bathroom you could flip the bedroom lamp and turn on lamps in your corridor?

Exactly.

You really don't need bright lights in the bedroom, do you?

Yes, both the shape and light are soft.

They feel soothing in that space.

I feel like that's one kind of subtlety.

I find your thoughts on designing presence very interesting.

Your designs don't disappear into the background, they feel just right.

Yes, just right.

They fit their surroundings.

A digital product vanishes when you turn off the power.

But a physical one stays in the room.

So, its appearance is extremely important.

This toothbrush seems like the epitome of subtle design.

Especially in a white bathroom.

Ease of use is very important too.

I made lots of models for this item, brushing with each one.

Then I'd leave it out to see how it looked.

Anything too electronic sticks out.

Of course, yes.

So, I hid the buttons, which are the most obvious indicators of a home appliance.

I was hoping to design it in a way that it would just look like a regular, manual toothbrush.

It has to be easy to use, and look balanced when not in use.

Both of those states had to be perfectly accommodated.

I feel that your concept of subtle design is very Japanese.

The idea of hiding your light under a bushel, not pushing for attention.

It is, but there are so many other demands when you create a design.

There are cost and technical constraints, and you have to balance those correctly as well.

Subtle design for me has links to self-effacement and modesty.

What drew you to those qualities?

So, after college, I got a job at an electronics manufacturer.

It was when cellphones were only just taking off, and we were bringing out new models every year.

I remember.

And every design had to be shiny and special enough to arouse envy in others.

It was moving so fast.

Right.

It really was.

And I enjoyed creating these designs, but I was also having some doubts.

At around age 30, I left my job to go and study in London.

I was eating through my savings the whole time, of course.

You had no money!

But I had a lot of free time!

So, I'd backpack to all kinds of places.

And on my travels, I noticed a lot of very simple, very local tools.

And I thought they were beautiful.

What kind of thing do you mean by simple?

When I was in Greece, I visited the island of Mykonos.

Someone on the ferry was carrying a basket of sweets to sell to passengers.

The basket was covered in this thick white plaster.

White is the island color.

Exactly! I arrived and saw the blue sky of the Aegean sea against these gleaming white buildings.

And that white basket was the perfect touch to a beautiful landscape.

When I went to Tibet, I was passing by a local house and spotted a beautiful mop.

A mop?

Yes, blue and red.

I looked around, and the whole family was dressed in similar colors.

The mop had clearly been made from scraps of traditional clothes.

That combination was really awe-inspiring.

Interesting!

So it was these experiences that shaped your personal design philosophy?

I'd spent years struggling to come up with striking, beautiful designs.

But it turns out there's perfect beauty in simplicity.

In not trying.

It's not about the object itself, but seeing it in context with its surroundings - - whether that's the inside of a home or in nature.

These beautiful scenes turned out to be what I wanted to create.

Incredible.

Now, let's look at a notebook series designed in subtle colors.

These unusual notebooks came out in 2020, designed in a variety of pale colors.

Just a little different from regular notebooks, they've attracted a dedicated fan base.

They were brought out by a firm that's been making notebooks for fifty years, largely for a major stationery manufacturer.

The notebooks were originally created after a realization that people with developmental disabilities find ordinary notebooks difficult to use.

We'd been making them for so long,
this had become the standard for us.

It was surprising to learn that
so many find it hard to use.

White paper reflects light.

That makes it hard to read
or write on for many people.

As a notebook maker, that's the
last thing we want for our users.

So we decided to make
stress-free notebooks.

Initially, the team struggled to find a clear direction.

So they reached out to Motomura Yuko, who has developmental disabilities, and supports others with similar issues.

I'd kind of given up on notebooks.

But I'd always hoped for
ones with different colored paper.

Many people with disabilities
are unable to write to begin with.

There are all sorts of reasons for this.

Often the lines are
too close together.

Even as adults, they find it difficult
to stay between the lines.

They asked each person about their personal preferences for color and line thickness.

After collecting feedback, they worked together on the final design.

Three subtle colors of notebook, just enough to prevent light reflection.

Thin, narrow lines make it easy to lose track of each character's placement.

So, they alternated thicker and slimmer lines.

Another design uses no lines at all.

Stripes of different colors break up the page...

...allowing users to write without worrying about going over a line.

It's less confining, and a better layout for drawing.

Some users found superfluous information like the 'date' area distracting, so this was also removed.

It may not bother most.

But we absorb so much information,
whether we want to or not.

Simpler layouts help us focus
on the information we need.

It seems so minor, but it
makes such a big difference.

We're a minority.
And our disabilities are invisible.

The color and brightness are
irrelevant for most people.

So to see a product that reflects
our needs gave me goosebumps.

I was moved to tears when I held one.
I was delighted.

When they went on sale
people said it changed their lives.

They can finally take notes.

One parent told me
their kid hated studying.

But the notebook changed that.

They realized that the
reason their kid couldn't study...

...was because they had
the wrong tools.

It made me so happy to hear
that they could take notes with ease.

I think making something to
meet certain needs...

...produces items that are
easy to use for everyone.

I hope this product becomes known
as an accessible notebook.

That's real food for thought, isn't it?

It's easy to overlook accessibility needs.

Definitely.

These are the notebooks, right here.

Yes.

It's...

a notebook?

Yes!

Perfectly ordinary.

Nothing wild.

Very clean.

We'd all accepted that notebooks always look a certain way, but there's no actual rule about that.

I was just thinking the same thing.

I hear 'notebook' and visualize white paper with thin lines on it.

But looking at this, it seems a lot more natural and useable.

That really resonates with me.

It's a gentle design.

Would you consider this a subtle design?

Of course! The pale colors play a role.

But it feels genuinely natural, not a forced change.

It's not a special design that can only be used by people with disabilities.

When a standard design emerges, that's usually because it's the perfect fit for that era.

But things get overlooked.

Technology changes. Our standards are supposed to evolve.

This design is kind of bringing us back to something more natural.

Absolutely.

I think our standards are definitely changing.

There's a lot more attention being paid to diversity.

And we're shopping in completely new ways.

There's said to be over four billion people on social media these days.

So many.

What do they talk about?

Good restaurants, or interesting shops.

Which products are good, which are bad.

When I worked for a manufacturer all those years ago, you would put out a strong ad campaign to begin with,

and after the product hit the market, you rarely got much feedback.

Even negative feedback was muted.

But now, with social media, you get so many responses.

Because it was all about this initial push, we needed strong, striking designs.

These days, I feel people want something that actually functions in their day-to-day, and which is made with care.

But back then, if I tried to push that approach at the office, people laughed it off as naïve idealism.

I'm sure.

Right.

But it's more than that now.

If you put your heart into your work and make good products, they will sell.

I think it's a wonderful era for designers.

Absolutely.

On the topic of color - I'm from Hawaii, and colors there feel really strong and vibrant.

We have really blue skies, blue seas.

So I hear.

Bright pink flowers.

And that's really beautiful, of course.

But after I moved to Japan, seeing the seasons change throughout the year felt almost... melancholy.

I had never really experienced color affecting me in this way.

Japan has a very humid climate.

I wonder if that plays into our love of subtle shades as well.

Interesting.

The mountains and rice paddies often look a little hazy here.

That's true.

I do wonder if the Japanese preference for blurred silhouettes and paler colors is linked to that.

It seems likely.

Now let's look at subtle spatial interior design.

In Tokyo's stylish Omotesando district...

...one store is showcasing a new style of travel.

The brand is named for the Swedish word for cloud.

The concept is to allow travelers to float across the world like a cloud, without worrying about borders or languages.

Their suitcases were designed by product designer, Shibata Fumie.

The earthy colors are inspired by the natural tones of red clay, stone, and charcoal.

Like a much-loved bag, the items are designed to blend into any local landscape.

Futatsumata Koichi designed the shop space.

His design focused on the image of clouds and the color of its products.

They have a real natural feel.
Lots of earthen colors.

The brand name means cloud,
but it's more like a cloudy sky.

That's a strong element
of their brand image.

The location is a little
below ground level.

It's also narrow so
it feels a little like a cave.

To contrast this cloudy theme,
I wanted to emphasize the earth.

The main material is natural stone with a rough finish reminiscent of earthy ground.

Pale stone goes up the walls, rooting the interior design and showcasing the suitcases.

The central bench uses fabric with a similar, randomized texture.

Its color suits the overall tone of the space.

Function is vital in a limited space, so Futatsumata's goal was a relaxing lounge area.

The suitcases are the stars of the show,
and people want to try them out.

In Europe you find
a lot of flagstones.

So I added some to
the open space at the front.

Airports, meanwhile, have very
artificial floors.

My design combines these
manmade materials with natural ones.

Although we're pursuing
a natural theme...

...we're not looking to
simply recreate nature.

The shape of the stone, how it
intersects with other surfaces.

How could I arrange the different materials
to showcase each of them?

A lot of careful planning went into this.

Bringing all these disparate materials and functions together is at the heart of subtle design.

Subtle is a very broad term.

It's about more than visuals.

Function, material, and
emotional response.

All of these elements
should be deeply intertwined.

There should be no friction.

They need to work smoothly and
naturally with one another.

Perhaps it's all of these things
together that produces subtlety.

What an interesting space - so many different materials all working together.

Futatsumata-san is a close friend of mine.

Oh really?

Is he!?

He designed my home and office.

Oh wow! What a coincidence!

I really respect him as a designer, and I admire that interior design too.

The rounded shapes that link the stones on the floor and walls, and those hidden joins.

It feels like the space was carved out of stone.

And the carefully layered floor as well.

He's not just choosing materials for their look - he's also thinking of their function and fit.

The result is extremely natural.

A very soothing space.

Yes.

It is.

It's very hard to achieve that kind of quiet stillness without perfect harmony.

I suppose so.

So we have something new in the studio.

Yes, this is one of my recent designs - - a plant pot and vase.

This is made of bone china.

This is made by adding powdered animal bones to the clay or stone.

The result is a bright white, translucent finish.

Lovely.

A ceramics maker in the Hokuriku region made these.

They realized that finely crushed bone china can be used as fertilizer.

The white flecks here are crushed bone china.

Wait, fertilizer?

Really?

So it turns back into soil?

It does.

This company said something very interesting.

They said that their products simply borrow ingredients from nature for a set time.

Because ceramics will one day return to the earth.

How beautiful.

It was a bit of a wake-up call for me.

I'd been designing products with the vague idea that they would always continue to exist.

But thinking about it from the perspective of materials, depending on a material's lifespan, a product might not keep its shape for very long.

It will eventually separate into its disparate elements.

In that sense, even the shapes we create for it are fleeting, subtle things.

That seemed very beautiful to me.

Interesting.

I'd never thought much about subtleness in design before.

But it's a theme that's actually present in a lot of Japanese designs, isn't it?

Often something will strike me as being "off" about a product or a space.

I suppose that means it's "unsubtle."

I think so, yes.

When it's right, you don't notice it.

It just fits into place.

Yes, exactly.

It seems so natural and obvious.

Although I work in product design, I think of it as designing a temporary event.

Something fleeting.

That's lovely.

It gives me a new perspective, I think.

And helps you achieve more subtle designs, I imagine.

Subtlety will definitely be an important theme for me.

Is that a long-term philosophy?

It's a very abstract term, so there's a lot to explore.

I'm going to contemplate it slowly.

- I've really enjoyed talking today.
- Me, too.

Thanks for joining us.

Thank you.

Thank you.