Taku Satoh and his irresistible Ad Campaigns for Issey Miyake
Oozing with charm, the Issey Miyake Pleats Please ads created, and art directed by artist Taku Satoh are an incredible insight not only to his universe of artistic complexity, but to the Issey Miyake brand and the direction of each season.
Satoh showcases adorable yet immensely detailed illustrations, fusing together the Pleats Please vast array of colours and incredible pliancy in the form of visual cues for the latest seasons core direction.
Born in Tokyo, Satoh graduated in 1979 from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in the Department of Design. He completed his master's degree in 1981, and in 1984 founded Taku Satoh Design Office. It would not be until 2005 when Satoh would first collaborate with Issey Miyake in his first ad campaign, and since then his agency has worked on numerous ad campaigns showcasing the Pleats Please technology in an array of various different foods, animals, flowers and more.
Each collection of illustrations would always have a focus. For example, in 2018 their concept was “SEA” – wanting to highlight the beautiful colours and shapes that sea creatures undertake due to the lessened gravity in the ocean. Satoh and his agency drew flowing sea creatures in the season’s colours, elegantly drifting as they would in their habitat. Other focuses included “VITAMIN”, “ANIMALS” and “DELICIOUS”
Satoh’s ad campaigns have won numerous design awards, including winning the Gold Award in the Poster Design/Promotional category at the 95th NY ADC, and there is no question why. Very few times can a designer be able to correctly translate the artistic nature of a brands vision into an ad campaign.
Although, Satoh added a new string to the Issey bow entirely, not only keeping on-brand but artistically articulating the essence behind the Pleats Please technology in a relatable and easily digestible way [pun very much intended].
