Shin Matsunaga: Made in Japan – Plakate / Poster

Shin Matsunaga, born in Tokyo in 1940, is one of the most important international graphic designers in Japan. Matsunaga combines traditional Japanese graphics, drawings and paintings with Western settings without merging them. Clear typography, vivid colors and a wide range of pictorial inventions between illustration and photography determine the design of his posters. His work, including corporate design, editorial design and packaging design, has received numerous awards and has served as a model for many international designers.

Japanese graphic designers regarded Western functionalism as an excellent model and saw their own sign systems as a drawback. It was not until the 1960s that a new self-confidence led to a conscious use of one’s own traditions. The new independence was quickly recognized internationally as a great quality – the triumph of Japanese design began and continues to this day. In the past, the German Poster Museum has devoted numerous exhibitions to the models and influencing factors that have had an impact on German posters. With the exhibition on the work of Shin Matsunaga , this informal sequence continues at the Folkwang Museum. Here is the catalog of the exhibition.