Fracture: New Book & Exhibition Reveals 100 Years of Japanese Graphic Design

Opening this week at KURA Gallery in Tokyo, Fracture: Japanese Graphic Design 1875–1975 is a fascinating dive into a century of Japan’s visual culture. Curated by designer and historian Ian Lynam, the exhibition brings to life the stories, objects and everyday ephemera that shaped Japan’s unique graphic design language.

Running from July 11–26, Fracture functions as a living archive, featuring everything from kimonos with intricate Art Deco motifs to rare posters by iconic names like Yokoo Tadanori, and even Japan’s first radical feminist and LGBTQ+ publications. Visitors can see historic treasures like the original design guidelines for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics alongside beautiful works by anonymous designers whose contributions often go unsigned.

The show expands on Ian Lynam’s newly published book of the same name, a hybrid coffee table book and textbook that chronicles Japanese graphic design’s evolution through modernity, imperialism, gender and visual rebellion. After 15 years of research and two decades living in Japan, Ian’s work shines a light on overlooked stories behind the country’s graphic culture.

If you can’t make it to Tokyo, the book is an inspiring resource for any designer. Pick up your own copy on Amazon and bring the exhibition home.

More design inspiration Kura Gallery’s website