Visual puns and optical illusions by Shigeo Fukuda

"Never state what can be implied." - James Wong Howe

An opening paragraph in Shigeo Fukuda's "Hall of Fame" article on the American Design Council's website reads: "The Japanese, being culturally homogenous, need not articulate everything in order to be understood.  They believe in more indirect and abstract forms of expression." (1987)

I fist came across the work of Shigeo Fukuda in the book Graphic Agitation, which I wrote about in a post this week.  His work stood out as one I could use in my concept development research as much of it is propagandic but with a commercial style and a sense of humour.  

"Discovered" by Paul Rand, who brought Fukuda to the American audience, Fukuda's signature style in printmaking is is heavily influenced by the Swiss style - flat and 2-dimensional.   Much of his illustrations form optical illusions often created with human figures or limbs, and are intended to be humorous.  I think the element of surprise is effective in making the work resonate with people on a deeper level; Fukuda was vocal about his work making a social impact and by creating works that invited a second look.  Humour also disarmed the viewer, and even if they were not inclined to agree with the message, the image would be memorable.  

Fig. 1

Above: "All Flesh is Grass", a simple but visually engaging print which reminds the viewer that the crops and pastures herbivores eat needs to be taken care of and not polluted.

  Fukuda's art comes under the "propagandist" umbrella as many of his works were created to raise awareness of environmental and social issues.  "Fukuda's sense of high moral responsibility as a graphic designer is undertake with firm conviction.  His work effectively mirror and embraces the worldly causes he believes in.  Coupled with his fine flat for colour and layout, along with advanced Japanese reproduction techniques, Fukuda always manages to get his point across. " (1987) A key example is his body of work for Earth Day.  In the example shown in Fig.  2, an axe is shown as a metaphor for deforestation issues.  The little sapling brand sprouting from the handle represents the environmental struggle, with that little bit of hope.  

Fig. 2

 A second example (Figure 3) shows an image of the globe as a sprouting seed, emphasising the issues with the eco-system.  Figure 4 shows arms encircling the world, with the shape being completed as a handshake.  The metaphor is clear - respect, co-operation and care is needed to help the planet.   The article notes that "Fukuda's pro-environmental concepts are indeed abstract, yet globally familiar." (1987)  Even a non-English speaker can understand the visual message in Fukuda's pieces.

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

Another series of images, Environmental Pollution, subverts everyday household products into images that suggest harm and destruction.  Sharp ends of scissors, an open safety pin needle and a giant screw  - the images associated with producing goods have been turned on their head to suggest the dangers we often overlook.  The metaphors are subtle, but the readable text "Environmental Pollution" helps to prompt the viewer to understand the link between the two.  By over-producing goods and subsequently creating pollution and a large carbon footprint, manufacturers are causing a detriment to the environment.  "Contrary to Western styles of expression, Japanese communication is more emotional than rational.  Such emotion is profoundly linked to art.  Fukuda dramatically shatters all cultural and linguistic barriers with his universally recognisable style." (1987)

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

Fig. 7

Fukuda's commercial illustration is also worth noting, as the playful use of negative space holds a visual rhetoric to his which is similar to his political pieces in that they make the viewer stop and investigate the image.  Figure 6 is an advertisement for UCC Coffee, a coffee company that uses ethically sourced coffee beans.  The image is composed to look like the swirl of coffee in a mug as it is being stirred with milk, and this is cleverly constructed with hands holding coffee cups protruding from both the black and negative spaces.  The impression is that of a coffee company advertisement that shows the company's commitment to people and quality.  Figure 5 was used to advertise a Fukuda art show in 1975, perfectly showcasing the essence of his optical, stark and often witty style.  

Figure 8

Figure 9

Above: a fantastically simply illustration for "The Marriage of Figaro", an opera buffa about a group of people all scheming to marry each other off in revenge for deeds done in a previous play.  Fukuda showcases the subjects of music and sexual politics through turning a treble clef into an illusion which gives the impassion of a man and woman tangled up in each other.

Fukuda's most famous piece of work, "Victory 1945",  won various awards for it's simplistic approach to the issue of war.  The image is at first glance a funny one, as the sexual pun is so in-your-face, but underneath it is also a sharp criticism of the nuclear war.  

Fig 12

Fig 13

In a similar vein, No More War (above) shows a skull created with an assemblage of missiles.  Fukuda's stance on raising awareness of global issues was inspired by Takashi Kono, a graphic artist who had leanings towards propagandic messaging in his works .  At the time Kono was working in the industry, there was a surge of Western (particularly American) creative influences which were chipping away at the traditional Japanese ideas.  His work features typical subject matter of Japanese art such as mountains, flowers, koi fish etc, but without the traditional aesthetics.  An example of this is the blocky giesha composition, which is far removed from the style associated with Peter Paul Rubens and traditional Japanese art (Figure 12).  

Fig 14

Fig 15

A lot of Kono's work criticised this American influence - Figure 13, Sheltered Weaklings Japan, shows a school of little fish with the Japanese flag following a much larger, predatory-looking American fish.  The two red fish swimming in the opposite direction represent the U.S.S.R and China, the two political giants in the Cold War.  Kono's opinion on the political proceedings is clear here, as is an indication of what he wants to change.  There is not much else I can find of Kono's work as it is protected by data laws, but it was useful to look at what I could find.  It is easy to see how the ideas and presentation influenced Shigeo Fukuda's artistic voice.  

Fukuda's work ties in with my propagandic research as well as the theme of simplistic illustrations using shape and colour (see "An Exercise In Shapes").  My interest is in visual rhetoric which Fukuda has used again and again with great effect.  His most famous quote that sums his approach up"

"I believe that in design, 30 percent dignity, 20 percent beauty and 50 percent absurdity are necessary" - Shigeo Fukuda.  

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References

Unknown, 1987.  Shigeo Fukuda. [online article] Available at: http://adcglobal.org/hall-of-fame/shigeo-fukuda/ [Accessed 6th November 2014]

Images

All by Fukuda, Shigeo:

Figure 1: All Flesh Is Grass [online image] Available at  http://australianposterbiennale.com/other/poster-greats/

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 2: 1982, Earth Day [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/post/5099970531/japanese-poster-happy-earthday-shigeo-fukuda

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 3: 1982, Earth Day 2 [online image] Available at:

http://images.lib.ncsu.edu/luna/servlet/view/all/who/Fukuda,%20Shigeo/what/Graphic%20Design?sort=WORKTITLE,AGENTSORTNAME,IMAGEID,TITLETEXT

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 4: 1982, Earth Day 3 [online image] Available at:

http://images.lib.ncsu.edu/luna/servlet/view/all/who/Fukuda,%20Shigeo/what/Graphic%20Design?sort=WORKTITLE,AGENTSORTNAME,IMAGEID,TITLETEXT

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 5: 1973 Environmental Pollution [online image] Available at:

http://australianposterbiennale.com/other/poster-greats/

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 6: 1973 Environmental Pollution [online image] Available at:

http://australianposterbiennale.com/other/poster-greats/

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 7: 1973.  Evironmental Waste [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo+fukuda/page/4

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 8: 1975. Shigeo Fukuda Exhibition [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo_fukuda

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 9: 1984. UCC Coffee [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo_fukuda

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 10: International Carpet Design Competition [online image] Available at:

http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/shigeo-fukuda

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 11: 1981, The Marriage of Figaro [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo+fukuda/page/2

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 12: 1971.  Victory [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo+fukuda/page/5

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 13: 1968. No More War [online image] Available at:

http://gurafiku.tumblr.com/tagged/shigeo+fukuda/page/3

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 14: Kono, Takashi. Japan. [online image] Available at:

http://c20thgraphicdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2008/06/leilani-takashi-kono.html

[Accessed 6th November 2014]

Figure 15:  Kono, Takashi, . Sheltered Weaklings - Japan [online image] Available at:

http://22-2400.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/sheltered-weaklings.html

[Accessed 6th November 2014]