[Title] Dazzling India
[Artist] TONERICO:INC.
[Date] September 18 – November 18, 2008
The world of “Dazzling India,” viewed through the pulsating lens of a kaleidoscope.
TONERICO:INC., the design office involved in the creation of the window display for this two-month period, has incorporated the concept of the “kaleidoscope” as a key element for manifesting “Dazzling India” – the annual Maison Hermès Window theme in 2008. The domain of the kaleidoscope, an instrument originally developed as a scientific tool and then rapidly popularized as a toy, is mobilized to amplify colors, shapes and other dimensions many times over, coaxing viewers into a “dimension lying between reality and fantasy.”
The image that the minds at TONERICO:INC drew from India can best be described as a mix of “Sacred and Diversity.” The population of India has soared to over 1 billion people, representing a rich collection of races, ethnic groups, religions and languages. Indians, meanwhile, enjoy adorning themselves in beautiful fabrics, with multicolored products lining the shelves of stores in every city and town.
Indian-style numerals flowing across the space, exquisite marble latticework screens used in architecture, scenes of the expanding desertification in the country’s inland districts… Through the abstraction of these and other elements into the motif of window display composition, the aim is to achieve an even more pronounced sense of fusion on the strength of kaleidoscopic effects.
The diversified Hermès product creations breathe a vibrant sense of life into the abstract essence of this India motif. What’s more, the mirrors reflect the townscape on the outside, causing the people walking by and those gazing into the window to blend into the world within to become a part of “Dazzling India.”
TONERICO:INC.
TONERICO:INC. is a design office launched in 2002 by the three-person team of Hiroshi Yoneya (born in Osaka, 1968), Yumi Masuko (Tokyo, 1967) and Ken Kimizuka (Kanagawa, 1973). It handles a wide range of projects ranging from architecture and interior design to furniture, products and other realms. Since 2003, the office has been showcasing its creations at the Milan Salone on a regular basis. Awards earned to date include the JCD Design Award Golf Prize, Good Design Award and other distinctions. At the Salone Satellite 2005 Design Report Awards in Milan, for example, the TONERICO;INC. creation “MEMENTO” earned Grand Prix honors.