Featured Artist: Tetsuya Ando
T.A.S Japan is a conceptual leather brand we've been following for the past several months. What captivated us about T.A.S was the eccentric pieces they created, almost always in all black leather, in such a wide variety. We saw things like a padded stole, a sensu fan, a reclining chair and a ceramic hand giving you the finger. That's on top of the leather stuffs you're used to seeing like bags, boots and belts. Needless to say, we were intrigued and wanted to learn more about the brand. Luckily, there was someone kind enough to let us pick his brain.
B: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us. Please tell us who you are and what T.A.S Japan is.
T: My name is Tetsuya Ando, Director for T.A.S Japan. We are a leather brand based out of Tokyo, Japan.
B: Almost everything we've seen from T.A.S Japan is black. Why do you like working with black?
T: The color black has long existed amongst Japanese people's lives and has existed as the underlying philosophical part of our people. A couple examples of that would be from the architecture, Wabi Sabi, pottery from tea ceremonies, and Bushido, just to name a few.
B: Do you find that working with black limits you in any way? Are there any specific inspirations you draw from when creating?
T: Because we work with black, that doesn't mean that it limits our creativity. Within the color black, there are many other types of black. Thus, by working with many other types of black colors, we incorporate material, texture, and designs to our creations. We draw inspiration from various elements that exist amongst our culture such as literature, music, culinary art, architecure, and fine art. I'd like to further my understanding of how humans with various cultural values recognize the color black.
B: It's clear to see that inspiration in the way you fuse parts of Japanese culture with your more modern minimalist design, giving T.A.S Japan a distinct style.
Other than T.A.S Japan, does black play a roll in any other aspects of your personal life? Clothing, home decor, etc.
T: I keep black clothes, black furniture, and black objects near me at all times.
B: That's what we like to hear! Are there any future projects we should be looking forward to?
T: We are collaborating with many different artists from around the world for future projects, but for now it's classified.
B: Fair enough. We'll definitely be watching what T.A.S Japan is doing in the coming months. Thank you so much again for your time and congratulations on your success.
T: Thanks for the interview, and we hope that more people around the world will have the chance to see what we create.
Check out more from T.A.S Japan HERE
