MUJI seamlessly integrates into our daily lives, offering designs that revisit the essence of necessities, stripping away excess, and sometimes deconstructing and reconstructing to craft the fundamentals of living. One of the characteristics of MUJI products is their ‘blank spaces’, versatile features borne out of continuous creativity and ingenuity. Whether in the kitchen or at a desk, MUJI’s file boxes and storage solutions help to facilitate organization and tidiness, while the free schedule notebooks can serve as diaries or planners, adaptable to any layout one desires. These products, crafted with MUJI’s innovative spirit, feature ‘blank spaces’ that invite various uses according to the user’s perspective, adding freedom and joy to everyday life.

The concept of ‘mitate’ encompasses various interpretations: it involves both selecting and discerning . This technique is beautifully demonstrated in traditional Japanese aesthetics such as karesansui (dry landscape), mitate-e (thematic paintings), and in rakugo, where fans and tenugui (handkerchiefs) are transformed into versatile props. It’s like seeing a vast night sky within the confines of a bowl of soba noodles during Tsukimi, the moon-viewing festival, seeing it as a canvas for the imagination.

Within Japanese culture and everyday life, we can glimpse the charm and playfulness inherent in the concept of ‘mitate’.

By observing, selecting, and likening, we engage with the intentional blank spaces of MUJI products, inviting ‘mitate’. The small MUJI exhibition features the work of Tatsuya Tanaka, a miniature photographer renowned for his ‘mitate’ artistry, who transforms MUJI items into representations of varied life scenes. By picking up an ordinary daily item and shifting your perspective, you can discover a tapestry of life imbued with creativity, whimsy, and humour. This display of humour paints a vibrant scene that delights audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

The exhibit presents 16 original miniature works, alongside new pieces tailored to the region and season of the display, and this time, creations modelled after Singapore’s landmarks will greet you as you enter this miniature universe. The ‘mitate’ illuminates the diverse worlds of objects and life with an unrestrained spirit of play. We invite you to fully enjoy this exhibition and immerse yourself in the world of MUJI.

My Creation Process and MUJI

When brainstorming ideas for my creations, I aim to find motifs in the shapes of objects that are commonplace and familiar to all. In this regard, MUJI products harmonize well with my artwork. Furthermore, I utilize MUJI’s items to organize my expansive and continuously growing collection of materials. Their stackable, connectable, and interchangeable storage options facilitate easy expansion to match the increase in materials. This scalable adaptability bears a striking resemblance to the way I arrange and connect the ideas for my creations.

Tatsuya Tanaka