Japanese Designer Wins 1st Prize for Newcomers at International Furniture Fair in Milan

By Kie Noguchi / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:06 JST, April 10, 2025

MILAN — A lamp and containers created by a Japanese designer using palm tree bark dyed with a traditional technique won first prize at SaloneSatellite Award 2025 in Milan on Wednesday.

The award for promising young designers is part of the international furniture fair Salone del Mobile.Milano, which is currently underway in the Italian city.

Kazuki Nagasawa, 29, is a Tokyo-based designer. Adapting a Japanese technique that is ordinarily used to dye material with persimmon juice, Nagasawa dyed the bark of shuro palm trees, which are traditionally used to make brooms or tawashi scrub brushes. The dye solution also contained a substance extracted from scrap iron that was going to be discarded as waste.

The lamp is striking when lit, as the delicate texture of the bark becomes prominent. Nagasawa’s designs were highly praised by the jury for their consideration for the environment and their presentation of a long-familiar material in a form suited to modern life but without losing its value.

“I was able to convey the possibilities of traditional Japanese manufacturing,” Nagasawa said.