Nendo taps into nature's secrets
Since the start of this column more than five years ago, we've been strong supporters of Oki Sato — better known as Nendo — and have closely followed his development as a creator into the design superstar he is today.
His two new design projects are as strong as ever: Otokurage earphones for Elecom and the Kotoli carrying case for French Champagne house Ruinart.
"Oto" is the Japanese word for "sound" and "kurage" is "jellyfish," which pretty much gives away what the design aesthetic of Otokurage is about. The entire bud of each earpiece is covered in a soft, translucent plastic shell, its shape reminiscent of a swimming jellyfish, and each pair of earphones is amusingly packaged in a clear PET bottle.