OGATA is a way of being, an aspiration to a fulfilling life in harmony with nature, in a world of limited resources.Everyday life is full of implicit rules that give form to our acts and behavior: more than protocol or etiquette, they are common gestures through which people share a given experience. In Japan, this set of manners is called sahō. Reinventing traditional sahō by adapting them to current customs and contemporary aesthetics can produce new, harmonious ways of being that can be implemented around the world. These sahō are deeply rooted in nature and yet still open to outside influences. With a holistic vision, OGATA develops contemporary sahō in all fields of everyday life, such as tea, cuisine, sweets, craft or fragrance, by designing the spaces and tools to sustain them. These new forms are not born on a whim: to create original ways of being, we first have to create things, practices, and customs, in the hopes that people will eventually appropriate them.As these sahō develop and spread thoughout the world, they are in turn affected by local customs, taking on new forms, in a process of creative hybridization. OGATA is thus a platform for a wider community to take part in a fulfilling life experience.
Read OGATA by Shinichiro Ogata (published in 2023 by Rizzoli)
Everyday life is shaped by implicit rules that give form to actions and behaviors. Beyond protocol or etiquette, these are shared gestures through which a collective experience takes shape. In Japan, this set of practices is known as sahō. By reinterpreting traditional sahō in response to contemporary lifestyles and aesthetics, new and harmonious ways of being can emerge - ones that resonate beyond their place of origin. Rooted in nature yet open to external influences, these practices form the foundation of a holistic approach to living. From its inception, the OGATA vision has sought to address everyday life in its entirety. This has led to an exploration of sahō across multiple fields, including tea, cuisine, wagashi, and craft, through the careful design of spaces and tools that sustain and give form to these practices.
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Shinichiro Ogata
Ogata is a designer and the founder of Simplicity Co. He lives and works in Tokyo and Paris. Having established Simplicity Co. in 1998, Ogata aspires to establish a contemporary way of being inspired by the culture and traditions of Japan. In Japan, Ogata has developed his own specialized establishments, including tea houses, restaurants, tea and confectionary brands and a collection of craft products. In addition to his own company’s brands, Ogata is responsible for the design and direction of a wide range of projects in architectural, interior, product, graphic, and packaging design. He founded OGATA to share the fruits of his work with a wide international community.
