In the expansive, often overwrought universe of international design fairs, Designtide Tokyo returned after a 12-year hiatus with a lineup that redefined what a design fair can be.
Eschewing the sprawling commercialism of megavenues, from Nov. 27 to Dec. 1, Designtide Tokyo embraced the intimacy of the moderately sized Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall. With just over 30 exhibitors — spanning artists and designers from Japan, Korea, Sweden, Taiwan and the U.K. — the fair felt less like a market and more like a meticulously curated ecosystem. This boutique format encouraged slower, more deliberate engagement and created room to breathe within the overengineered world of design showcases.
But Designtide Tokyo’s distinction lay less in its scale and more in its philosophy. Objects stood alongside audiovisual creations and technology-infused artistry, dissolving rigid boundaries between form and function, object and sound, physical and ephemeral. Few design fairs dare to frame design as an act of sensory dialogue as this one did.
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