Exhibition
『ブック・アクティビスト』
Irma Boom: Book Activist
Since its launch in 2015, MUJI BOOKS has promoted a life enriched by books under the concept “Timeless Words, Inspiring Words. ”For us, the printed book is not just content but it has an important physical presence. Unlike fleeting digital information, printed books are tangible, layered, and grow and age with us.
To mark its 10th anniversary, MUJI BOOKS has developed “Book Activist” with Dutch book designer Irma Boom. The publication surveys her work – over 500 books across about 40 years – while exploring the nature of the printed book from multiple perspectives. The result is a single volume: small and 1500 pages thick.
Over the years, Irma Boom has collaborated with prestigious, world - renowned partners like Chanel, the Vatican Library and MoMA, creating project-specific solutions. In doing so, she distills the essential from a vast amount of information. This approach closely aligns with MUJI’s philosophy: carefully selecting materials, rethinking processes, and creating project specific solutions.
This exhibition, the first of its kind in Asia, offers a rare chance to experience Boom’s unique oeuvre.
On view are printed works alongside her rarely seen small, handmade prototypes. Visitors will also encounter a selection of quotes by Boom on her design philosophy and practice.
“Book Activist” is a tribute to all those who bring books into being – those who make them, carry them, and read them. As one of humanity’s oldest media, the printed book protects us from forgetting, while opening boundless horizons of imagination.
We hope this exhibition will inspire a rediscovery of the enduring possibilities of the printed book.
MUJI BOOKS
Time
11:00 – 21:00
- Open times and holidays follow the open hours and closed days of the store.
- Please note that some of the exhibits may not be available for viewing due to changes in the exhibition schedule or events.
Credits
- Organiser
- Ryohin Keikaku Co., Ltd.
- Planning with
- Irma Boom, FRAGILE BOOKS
- Graphic design
- Irma Boom office, SHIMA ART&DESIGN STUDIO
- Site Construction
- HIGURE 17-15 cas
- Cooperation
- ALLARDPIERSON(University of Amsterdam), Reflex, Tadashi Morisaki, FRAGILE BOOKS
- Support
- Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
イルマ・ボーム Irma Boom
She is a bookmaker based in Amsterdam. She has created over five hundred books. Her experimental approach often challenges the conventions of traditional books in both physical design and printed content. Since 1992, Boom has been senior critic at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, and she gives lectures and workshops worldwide. She has received many awards for her book designs and, in 2001, was the youngest person ever to receive the Gutenberg Prize. Boom’s books are in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Art Institute of Chicago; Vatican Library; and Centre Pompidou, Paris, among other institutions. The Special Collections of the University of Amsterdam collect her complete oeuvre. In 2014, Boom received the Johannes Vermeer Award, the Dutch state prize for the arts. In 2019, she received an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Art, London.
Photo by Anton Corbijn
WEB｜https://www.irmaboom.nl/
Related Information
<Related Publication>
“Book Activist”
Author｜Irma boom
ISBN｜9784-90908-481
Publisher│MUJI BOOKS
Pre-sale at MUJI GINZA from Jun 5, 2026. Sales will begin at MUJI BOOKS stores nationwide.
＜Special Exhibition＞
MUJI BOOKS
MUJI, which has been conveying the true nature of things with just a few words, has valued words as the “essence” of things from the time they were born. MUJIBOOKS, a collection of books that have been read and passed down from generation to generation, proposes a life with books along with “much better words”.
