Project name: Tojiro Knife Gallery Osaka
Interior design: KATATA YOSHIHITO DESIGN (l/o)
Client: TOJIRO co., ltd.
Design cooperation and construction: c.e. management co., ltd.
Lighting design: KATATA YOSHIHITO DESIGN / sunwork co., ltd.
Location: Osaka, Japan
Photo: Masaaki Inoue
Area: 40 sqm
Year: March 2024
Project description from design firms KATATA YOSHIHITO DESIGN (l/o)
A retail space integrating Japanese craftsmanship, maintenance culture, and contemporary spatial design
The project places particular emphasis on integrating production and retail. The maintenance room is equipped with the same machines and tools used at Tojiro’s main factory in Tsubame-Sanjo, enabling everything from daily maintenance to complex repairs. By making these processes visible, the project communicates the brand’s philosophy of long-term use and care.
A key architectural feature is the reinterpretation of yoroi-bari, a traditional Japanese construction technique, as a knife display system. Knives appear to float on wooden panels, secured by concealed magnets and precise structural detailing that balances safety, functionality, and visual tension. The warm wooden interior contrasts with an armour-like stainless-steel facade, creating a continuous design language that clearly articulates the different functions of the space.
Rather than treating space as an end in itself, the design process began by identifying what the project needed to communicate. From this starting point, spatial structure, materiality, and user experience were developed in reverse. The result is a retail environment in which tradition and industry are structurally integrated, offering a contemporary expression of Japanese craftsmanship.
About KATATA YOSHIHITO DESIGN (L/O)
KATATA YOSHIHITO DESIGN (L/O) is a multidisciplinary design studio based in Niigata, Japan, working across architecture, interior design, product design, and creative direction. The studio focuses on projects rooted in craftsmanship, industry, and local culture, translating complex ideas, techniques, and histories into clear spatial and experiential structures. Rather than designing form as an objective, the practice begins by identifying what a project must communicate and develops space, structure, and experience from that foundation.
Source: V2com-newswire.com
