DESIGN CULTURE IN JAPAN

This course introduces ten key topics to understand design heritage in Japan and discusses design issues in the contemporary world. Students will obtain a better understanding of design history, especially concerning Japan, and become interested in how every- day things get better, which embraces landscapes, architecture, crafts, products, printings, and communities. This course will be brought for the Erasmus Mundus Euroculture MA degree. However, Osaka University graduate students may also enroll.

As seen below, each class will deal with one of the ten topics. In the beginning of the class, what matters in each topic will be explained to clarify points that are to be discussed. Thereafter, students will exchange ideas about a certain topic in small groups, which should be facilitated by comparing situations in Japan and European countries. The next topic will then be briefly introduced to prepare for the next class. Grading will be based on essays, which students will hand as a report of their group discussion in each class.