Hinoki Reconstructed

This project is an attempt to reconstruct hinoki cypress trees felled by a landslide in a small satoyama area of Wakayama Prefecture, giving them a second life as new objects. While many hinoki forests exist around the designer’s base village, most are difficult to utilize as timber due to aging populations and industrial structures. The hinoki forest where the landslide occurred was planted about 60 years ago and was once carefully managed, but met a sad end. Isamu Hazama began researching the material after acquiring these felled hinoki logs from the locals. He decomposed the logs into fundamental elements—point, line, and plane—observing them from multiple directions. It is obvious that trees grow by adding growth rings, so the direction of cutting reveals different textures. The revealed textures were printed life-size and fixed as flat surfaces. Combining these point, line, and plane elements then created objects with volume again, resulting in this series of works.

Isamu Hazama / material forest

Isamu Hazama / material forest

Isamu Hazama, born in Wakayama, has been based in a mountainous village in Hashimoto since 2018. He has been researching the materials available in the surrounding satoyama, and creating a variety of objects by interweaving traditional wisdom and experimental methods. He also collaborates with other artists and designers through the space Material Forest. Some of his work has been published in a private edition under the imprint Between in Between.

EXHIBITION / AWARD
  • Dezeen Awards 2025 / longlist
  • Design Anthology Awards 2024 / finalist
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