"The Father of Kumamoto Kuma" Famous Japanese Designer Mizuno Gaku: Hopes to participate in the design of China's smart city

Source: Global Times

[Global Times reporter Xing Xiaojing] Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture Sales Minister and Happiness Minister "Kumamoto Kuma" became popular in Japan with his cute appearance and cute expression, and in the view of his "biological father" - Japanese design master Mizuno Gaku, the popularity of "Kumamoto Kuma" is inseparable from three major elements: personal efforts, no matter the cold and heat, this "bear" is always working and actively interacting and communicating everywhere; Kumamoto Prefecture is free to open copyright, and anyone can use the portrait of "Kumamoto Kuma"; The enthusiasm of the people of Kumamoto Prefecture has nurtured "Kumamoto Kuma", allowing him to leave his hometown and go further afield.

As a representative of Japan's post-70s generation designers, Mizuno Gaku has a wide range of fields, such as advertising, graphics, product development, and brand design. His major design works include Uniqlo series clothing, Japanese Kaji Ugai U Tada Hikaru album cover, 711 product packaging in Taiwan, etc. It has won many international awards such as the "One Show" Gold Pencil Award, the world's highest award in advertising, the Silver Award of the CLIO Awards and many other international awards. Taking advantage of the opportunity of Mizuno Gaku to hold a solo exhibition in Beijing, a reporter from the Global Times recently conducted an exclusive interview with him.

The total cumulative revenue of Kumamoto Kuma exceeded 660 billion yen

Although the official Chinese name is "Cool MA Meng", people prefer to call this cute black bear from Kumamoto "Kumamoto Bear". According to the latest data released by Kumamoto Prefecture, "Kumamoto Kuma" has 808,000 followers on Twitter, bringing 150.5 billion yen in economic gains in 2018 alone, a new high for seven consecutive years, and the total cumulative revenue is more than 660 billion yen. The 9-year-old Kumamoto Kuma is already the most popular mascot in all of Japan.

As the designer of "Kumamoto Kuma", Mizuno Gaku has always been known as the "father of Kumamoto Kuma", but he himself considers himself more like the "mother" of "Kumamoto Kuma", and the famous Japanese writer Kaoru Koyama is the "father". Originally, when the Kyushu Shinkansen opened in 2011, the Kumamoto Prefectural Government wanted to design a LOGO based on the concept of "Kumamoto Surprise" in order to attract tourists. They entrust Koyama Kaorudo to help, and Koyama finds Mizuno. Mizuno thought of many plans and proposed to launch a mascot, which was repeatedly communicated and coordinated by Koyama and finally supported by the Kumamoto Prefectural Government, and "Kumamoto Kuma" came into being.

Mizuno told the Global Times reporter about the design process, saying that there is a "bear" in the name of Kumamoto Prefecture, and the main body of kumamoto Castle, a representative local building, is black, thus locking the shape of the mascot as a "black bear". In the Kyushu region, where bears are native, men are known for their physical fitness and volcanic activities, so "Kumamoto Bear" is tall and powerful, and his two fiery red faces are not stupid. In Mizuno's eyes, the mother of "Kumamoto Kuma" has another meaning: "give birth" to him, watch him grow up slowly under the nourishment of the Kumamoto people and many fans, and finally leave home and watch him go farther and farther.

Invitation from China

The great success of Kumamoto Kuma quickly increased Mizunoji's overseas popularity, and almost every day design invitations from all over the world came to the door, including Many Chinese companies. These companies cover catering, real estate, entertainment companies and other fields, and most hope that he will design another "blockbuster" mascot like "Kumamoto Kuma" to drive recognition and increase product sales.

Mizuno Gaku always "refuses to take orders", he said in an interview with the Global Times reporter, "Design based on this purpose alone is meaningless, designing a mascot is not difficult, but it must have soil to nourish it if it wants to grow up, which is an important factor that I consider when taking orders." The Mizuno Doctrine, like the three elements of the popularity of "Kumamoto Kuma" mentioned earlier, all I can do is to "give birth" to him.

For more than 20 years, Mizuno has been exposed to various companies, and he has summed up a set of his own theories - there are only three kinds of companies in the world, the first one is only to make money; The second is the commitment to the benefit of mankind; The third is to make money while benefiting mankind. He only considers working with the second and third types of companies, "I don't take orders to make money," Mizuno told the Global Times.

Mizuno gaku appreciates companies like Uniqlo, allowing more people to wear good-quality and inexpensive clothing; He also appreciates Alibaba, which has changed the way humans live. In his philosophy, "righteousness" is the cornerstone of all actions, and he is willing to cooperate with this kind of enterprise with "great righteousness".

In the process of continuous selection, Mizuno Gaku encountered the Lychee APP from China. On the sound interactive platform provided by Lychee, users can record, edit, store, listen, and share in one, fully display their vocal talents, and anyone can live an anchor addiction. Mizuno thinks such things are very interesting.

Moreover, in order to make Mizuno learn to "take orders", the lychee APP did everything in its power. The working team of senior leaders went to Japan several times to communicate and cooperate, invited Mizuno to visit China, and introduced to him the development status and vision of Chinese Internet companies. These efforts impressed Mizuno gaku and eventually led to the first collaboration with a Chinese company.

On the basis of the original LOGO of the lychee, Mizunogaku extends the aesthetics of geometric modeling, and finally forms a novel lychee flower. In addition, Mizuno Gaku also designed the Chinese brother of "Kumamoto Bear" for Lychee, the mascot TEKI, which comes from a strange planet and has a strong futuristic color. Mizuno revealed that he did not use TEKI as a mascot when designing it, but imagined how to anthropomorphize lychees.

The human imagination in the era of AI is precious

With the rapid iteration of innovative technology, artificial intelligence has replaced manpower in more and more fields. Mizuno admits that the way designers exist has changed dramatically. Those repetitive and tedious tasks can be handed over to artificial intelligence, but the unique "imagination" of designers has become precious.

So, how do you be imaginative? The Global Times reporter has previously heard a saying that the rich natural environment helps to stimulate the imagination, and the reason why Japanese Nobel Prize winners are mostly because most of them have lived in a good natural environment such as the seaside and village since they were young, and there is enough space to be in a daze and think about some imaginative things.

Mizuno refuted this view, saying that according to this theory, there should be more Nobel laureates in Kenya, South Africa and other countries. He believes that no matter what the environment, sufficient knowledge is the key to opening the imagination.

Mizuno Gaku's many design works are often surprising, and people who do not understand art can always feel just right even if they can't say one, two or three. In fact, behind each work, Mizuno Gaku has done a full investigative work. Either soaking in the library to consult a large number of materials, or communicating with customers round after round of interviews, not sparing any details, often spending half a year or more on a work.

Based on his profound knowledge and rich experience, Keio University, a top Japanese university, extended an olive branch to Mizuno Gaku and hired him as a special associate professor to teach brand design courses to the students of the university.

"I have always believed that the stimulation of knowledge can stimulate more imagination, and this solo exhibition is not only for designers, but also for ordinary people." Mizuno Gaku told the Global Times reporter. Mizuno's solo exhibition in Beijing lasts for one month until October 13.

Mizuno Has not yet designed a work with Chinese elements, he told the Global Times reporter that traits such as pandas and red are good materials, but the "work" he is most looking forward to is designing cities. He learned that all parts of China are vigorously promoting the construction of smart cities, and he hopes to have the opportunity to receive such a job offer and contribute to creating a livable environment for human beings.