# Six Standout Projects Unveiled at Designart Tokyo 2026 The tenth anniversary festival showcases innovative Japanese creativity across various citywide locations. - **Source:** [Dezeen](https://www.dezeen.com) - **Published:** 2026-11-05 - **Topic:** [culture](https://brifing.si/c/culture) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/53494b65-b235-45b5-ad3b-6bcacfbda7a7 ## Festival Scope and Venue Designart Tokyo celebrates its 10th anniversary with 150 projects from 13 countries. The event runs from 30 October to 8 November 2026 across various city locations. The main exhibition venue occupies the former Tokyo Expressway site, now an elevated park in Ginza, also hosting the festival's first dedicated design store. ## Sustainable Adhesive Innovation Nomura studio presents Pulling Apart, a prototype adhesive tape designed for easy disassembly of timber and metal materials. Developed with Aica Kogyo Company, the tape holds heavy items firmly but releases instantly when tugged. This innovation addresses the difficulty of recycling materials bonded with traditional, permanent glues that damage surfaces. ## Accordion-Style Lighting Design Experimental studio Howdunit created the Peco Poco lamp, inspired by the Japanese onomatopoeia for a growling stomach. The lamp features delicate, gauzy textile layers that unfold rhythmically like an accordion. Users can adjust the height manually using a small hook integrated into the top of the shade for versatile lighting configurations. ## Forestry and Paper Research Oji Holdings and studio We+ explore forest perspectives through an encyclopedic exhibition in Ginza. Nine professionals, including wood specialists and chefs, contributed responses to managed forest landscapes. The display features unique items like spoons whittled from fallen branches and wood sheets crafted from bark using traditional washi paper techniques. ## Geometric Paper Crafting 21B Studio debuts its first solo show, Box, at the Tiers Gallery in Shibuya. The exhibition explores diverse folding and incision techniques for paper boxes. Visitors receive a flatpack poster that, when assembled, mimics the brutalist architecture of the gallery itself, highlighting the studio's focus on geometric structural design. ## Tempura-Inspired Material Finish Student Cecil Nabenashi experiments with a unique deep-frying technique for design objects at Tokyo Midtown. By coating paper and fibers in a non-edible batter, he creates durable finishes for vases and bowls. Nabenashi aims to refine this process for future applications, including the creation of a deep-fried textile garment. ## Industrial Romanticism Collaboration Axis Gallery hosts Industrial Romanticism, a group exhibition featuring eight major Japanese companies including Toto and Fujifilm. Designers reimagined standard products with creative twists. Yamaha's Ryusuke Baba contributed a piano constructed from rejected timber pieces, resulting in a keyboard that produces an intentionally offbeat sound compared to standard professional instruments. ## Designart Tokyo's Cultural Impact The festival serves as a critical platform for both emerging students and established brands like Nendo and Alessi. By utilizing unconventional spaces like the KK Line, the event integrates design into Tokyo's urban fabric. It highlights the intersection of traditional craftsmanship, sustainable material science, and modern industrial manufacturing processes. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.dezeen.com/2026/11/05/designart-tokyo-2026-highlights/ — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._