Mitsuo Katsui has continually broken new ground in the field of graphic design by focusing on the idea of light and how it could be combined with technology.
Exceptional and rather unknown, he carved the way of graphic design he is amongst the first digital artists. His style is unique, colorful, vibrant, stimulating.
He has been one of the leading figures in Japanese graphic design for over half a century, and is a pioneer in exploring digital design as an expression.
Camera obsession
As a student he became obsessed with cameras. He studied color contrast and tone, and became interested in the high contrast of light and shadow in black and white photography.
He quickly understood the potential of digital.
In the streets of Tokyo, with a Leica A3 camera, he often explored cracks between buildings in Ginza or construction sites under construction.
“I liked to explore a world that resonates by mixing sunlight with digital light”
He was not really interested in the things he photographed, but rather in the lights and shadows that penetrated them.
His eye for light and texture, even in the digital space, has been cultivated since his camera experimentation days.
After university, Katsui took postgraduate courses in design and photography. His skills progressed rapidly, leading to exhibitions in Tokyo art galleries. Katsui.
He was interested in both computer graphics and printing technologies.
“In my opinion the essence of design is to reveal this interactive relationship between nature and our self from a totally innovative viewpoint or location; in other words, to exhibit a form that conveys surprise… The universe, man, nature, life—everything blends and reverberates”
taking advantage of technology to innovate in art
He was amongst the first ones to produce graphics by purely computerized means, which enabled him to achieve amazing color gradations. He also innovated by replacing the traditional system of analyzing and composing colors from primary colors with a new color chart system based on 14 colors.
This opened up a vast field of chromatic creation, an essential feature of his work. He constantly looked at graphic design from the root rather than the surface, grasping it as a visual language, he analyzed the phenomenon of light and projected it onto a number of works.
“using a macintosh, i was able to create momentary, mysterious spaces that differed from the fixed world that exists on paper“
In 1968, Japan’s leading ink manufacturer, Dainippon Ink and Chemicals (DIC), commissioned Mitsuo Katsui to create the DIC Color Guide: a full-size swatch book with 641 color chips and a mixing chart. Together with two other leading designers – Ikko Tanaka and Tadahito Nadamoto – Mitsuo chose 600 basic colors from 3,000 candidate colors and presented them in attractive and inspiring combinations.
This work has become a benchmark for all Japanese printing companies and has earned DIC recognition as a leading name in color engineering.
Revolutionizing the design industry
At age 30, he decided to go independent and created his own design studio. Among his outstanding works:
- the creation of a three-volume encyclopedia for the publisher Kodansha (an English-language encyclopedia covering a wide range of Japanese topics). He also contributed to standardize the entire editorial process, from design policy to type development and color planning.
- the artistic direction of several major international exhibitions, including those in Osaka (1970), Okinawa (1975) and Tsukuba (1985).
He passed away in August 2019
art of internet 