MUJI NOTEBOOK

Challenge: Meeting the brand in application development

Takram was first approached by MUJI to develop this application at a time when the first iPad was about to be released. Kenya Hara, the graphic designer who saw an unexplored opportunity in the crossing between the two brands of MUJI and the iPad, had requested Takram to be involved in the development of this application. Takram first began by studying the commonalities that exist between MUJI and the iPad. This study enabled Takram to specify and take on the challenge of how to express the clean, easy-to-use, and familiar image of the MUJI brand through the iPad, a digital device.

Approach: From prototyping to software development

The breakthrough in this project came when Takram defined MUJI as a stationery company and the iPad as a digital device and combined these two contrasting elements. The concept of the “digital stationery” came up in the design process. The iPad, just like stationery, is operated by hand and can be used on a desk or on a lap. Takram arrived at the “notepad application” as the target concept by exploring the areas where MUJI’s brand image crosses with the scenarios that involve the iPad. In this project, Takram refined the prototype through a repeated process and designed and developed the user interface and the final version of the software in a short amount of time.

Design Engineer, Project Director

Kinya is an award-winning design engineer experienced in a wide range of products including hardware, software and interactive art. He holds a BEng from the University of Tokyo, an MA from the Royal College of Art in the UK.  His work was selected as a permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He was assigned as a visiting professor the Royal College of Art, from 2015 to 2018. With his contribution to the RCA, he was awarded as an Honorary Fellow, RCA in 2018.  Kinya is also appointed as a member of several design related committees of Japanese Government.

Kinya Tagawa

Creative Technologist, Project Director

Yosuke is director and creative technologist at Takram London, specialising in futures research, digital prototyping and interaction design, and designs for better-informed decision-making about our future.
His recent projects, including Transitions to sustainable futures research with Hitachi, focus on the interplay between people, technology and the planet.
Yosuke was the recipient of the 2018 Swarovski Designers of the Future Award. He has also written for design publications such as Core77 and ICON magazine.

Yosuke Ushigome

Context Designer, Project Director

Kotaro WATANABE splits his time between Tokyo and London, aiming to use design to weave stories rather than simply creating products. He has lived and worked in cities including Tokyo, Hong Kong and Brussels among other places.

Kotaro Watanabe

With Takram since 2012, Hisato is an award-winning design engineer whose multidisciplinary abilities span from hardware to software and from art to science. After working LEADING EDGE DESIGN corp., Hisato founded ON THE FLY Inc. in 2010 and produced a number of influential works including the notable on the fly navigation design. A recipient of the Good Design Award in 2004 and the German iF Product Design Award in 2005, his work has most recently received acclaim at the Media Arts Festival held by the Japanese National Agency of Cultural Affairs in 2012. He holds a B.Eng. in Department of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tokyo, and Media-Master degree from the International Academy of Media Arts and Sciences (IAMAS).

Hisato Ogata

R&D, design, prototyping of screen-based and/or digital experiences such as app, web, digital services

Digital

“MUJI NOTEBOOK” is a notepad application for the iPhone and the iPad. This application is designed with advanced functionalities including hand-written word recognition and predictive text, and can be used for sketching and handwriting. Notes recorded on this app can also be shared through SNS. Based on concept development, Takram worked on refining the application’s prototype over a repeated process and designed and developed the user interface and the final version of the software in a short amount of time.

MUJI NOTEBOOK

Challenge: Meeting the brand in application development

Approach: From prototyping to software development

Project Information

Team

MUJI NOTEBOOK

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.css-16wsddp.en.en-ja{font-size:108%;vertical-align:-0.005em;}.css-16wsddp.en.en-zh{font-size:108%;vertical-align:0.005em;}.css-16wsddp.zh{-webkit-font-smoothing:subpixel-antialiased;}Approach: From prototyping to software development

Project Information

Team

Challenge: Meeting the brand in application development

Approach: From prototyping to software development