AXIS Inc. will hold "Industrial Romanticism" exhibition at AXIS Gallery from Friday, October 31 to Sunday, November 9. This exhibition will showcase prototypes and concept models created by in-house designers from seven leading Japanese companies.
The prototypes and concept models created by companies for design exploration and designer development embody the dreams and aspirations of in-house designers. For a long time, the design magazine "AXIS" has also featured prototypes that envision the future of products.
This exhibition, in which 15 designers participate, presents unreleased prototypes and concept models that are not typically shown outside the company, alongside the origins of their ideas and their cherished philosophy toward design, conveyed as "romance."
The title of this exhibition, "Romanticism," refers to an artistic movement that emphasizes human subjectivity, sensibility, and emotion in opposition to social norms and rationalistic trends. In this exhibition, we hope to discover a future that emerges not from insights gained from social conditions or technological advances, but from the "collection of pure dreams" of each designer who creates new value. We hope that this will be an opportunity to empower in-house designers working in Japan's manufacturing industry.
| Event period |
Friday, October 31, 2025 to Sunday, November 9, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Time | 11:00 ー 20:00 *Last day 17:00 Close |
| Venue | AXIS Gallery |
| Fee | Free |
＜Image photos of the exhibited works＞
Left：Design by Ryo Suzuki (Yamaha) ／Right：Design by Yoshihiro Minamide (Mitsubishi Electric)
Left：Design by Hibiki Furuse (Sony Group)／Right：Design by Taki Yoshimura (FUJIFILM)
＜Director's Message＞
In an era where AI empowers anyone to freely materialize ideas, where 3D printers and crowdfunding enable anyone to produce goods and deliver them as products--why do we choose to live as industrial designers? Dreams and hopes, ambition and passion hidden within, while adapting to an ever-changing era as a designer employed by a company. This exhibition will uncover them and explore their appeal and potential.
YOSHIKI MATSUYAMA / Atelier Yoshiki Matsuyama
Most of the things that fill our society are designed by in-house designers. They propose a future that goes one step beyond what modern society needs and, by achieving it, make a significant contribution to society. Amid rapidly changing social conditions, now is the time to open the doors to in-house talent, transcend corporate boundaries, and create opportunities for discussion that question the relationship between the closely intertwined "Industrial" and the "Romanticism" within it.
RYOTA YOKOZEKI / RYOTA YOKOZEKI STUDIO