The Yusaku Kamekura Design Award was established to honor achievements of the late Mr. Yusaku Kamekura, the first President of JAGDA, who had a continued influence on the designers’ community around the world, and to seek further development of graphic design. This award was established with a grant from his bereaved family. JAGDA is responsible for the management of the award and has selected the best work from designs submitted for the Graphic Design in Japan annual. This award has been presented to the best design and its designer every year since 1999, regardless of the age or career of the designer. Mr. Kamekura created “contemporary” designs, competing with younger designers, until shortly before he passed away. He also sought artistic quality and the essence of graphic design through editing the graphic design magazine Creation. The Yusaku Kamekura Design Award respects his wishes and is given to graphic designs that express universality and innovation.
Award-Winning Work 2019
The 21st Yusaku Kamekura Award was presented Mr. Yoshiaki Irobe
Subway system CI plan (cl: Osaka Metro)
Click here for the selection process, award ceremony and exhibition information.
Award-Winning Designs in the Past Years
The 20th: Norio Nakamura
Publicity poster and exhibition posters for solo exhibition (cl: Creation Gallery G8)
The 19th: Yoshie Watanabe
Package designs for brand of sweets (cl: Plaisir)
The 18th: Ken Miki
Publicity posters for solo exhibition “APPLE+” (cl: DNP Foundation for Cultural Promotion)
The 17th: Kenjiro Sano
Posters for exhibition at design event HOKUSAI_LINE (cl: Tokyo Design Week)
The 16th: Kaoru Kasai
Peace campaign poster Hiroshima Appeals (cl: Hiroshima Peace Creation Fund, Hiroshima International Cultural Foundation, JAGDA Hiroshima)
The 15th: Keiko Hirano
Works created for art museum’s anniversary celebration The 60th anniversary of The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (cl: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo）
The 14th: Katsuhiko Shibuya
Image poster for cosmetic company SHISEIDO (cl: Shiseido)
The 13th N/A
No design received the award as a result of the strict selection process.
The 12th: Katsumi Asaba
Posters portraying design philosophy of home builder Misawa Design 2009 BAUHAUS (cl: Misawa Homes)
The 11th: Ryosuke Uehara
Fashion brand THEATRE PRODUCTS graphic tool (cl: Theatre Products)
The 10th: Taku Satoh
VI, posters and venue design for 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT Exhibition 2: water (client: 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT)
The 9th: Shin Matsunaga
Packaging design for ISSIMBOW Katachi-Koh incense (client: Issimbow)
The 8th N/A
No design received the award as a result of the strict selection process.
The 7th: Mitsuo Katsui
Posters for the collection of works Visionary Scape (client: Katsui Design Office)
The 6th: Kazunari Hattori
Editorial design of Ryuko Tsushin fashion magazine (client: Infas)
The 5th: Masayoshi Nakajo
Posters for solo exhibition Mount Fuji: The Incurable Malady of Masayoshi Nakajo (client: Creation Gallery G8)
The 4th: Kashiwa Sato
Posters promoting CD release Smap (client: Victor Entertainment)
The 3rd: Kenya Hara
Book design of Paper and Design (client: Takeo)
The 2nd: Kazumasa Nagai
Posters for solo exhibition Life (client: International Design Center NAGOYA)
The 1st: Ikko Tanaka
Poster series Salvatore Ferragamo: The Art of the Shoe (client: Salvatore Ferragamo Italia S.p.A.) and other works included in Graphic Design in Japan 1999
