Week 9: Laser-cut Designer Seaweed (A picture a day)

Laser-cut Designer Seaweed

 Sakura patterns (Cherry Blossoms)

Mizutama (Water Drops)

Asanoha (Hemp)

Kikkou (Turtle Seashell)

Kumikkou (Tortoise Shell)

In an effort to reinvent the cuisine, without losing the sight of the age-old tradition embedded in the culture, Japanese ad agency I&SBBDO has created laser-cut seaweed sheets for sushi.

Called ‘Unimo Seaweed’, the delicate, paper-thin sheets of ‘Nori’ (the Japanese seaweed sheets used for sushi) were laser-cut with classic Japanese pattern designs to take the sushi experience to the next level. Each decorative pattern symbolizes a notion. The Sakura patterns (Cherry Blossoms), symbolizes beauty; Mizutama (Water Drops), symbolizes luck; Asanoha (Hemp), symbolizes growth; Kikkou (Turtle Seashell) symbolizes longevity; and Kumikkou (Tortoise Shell), symbolizes long-life.

In my opnion, it is hard to think of a product that could spur less interest online than a black square of seaweed. Furthermore, the design of a square of Nori has not changed since its creation in the 15th century. I love how the juxtaposition between a modern design applied to a traditional product such as seaweed has given Japanese cuisine such as sushi rolls a very contemporary look.

I feel that choosing the right designs was also important, it is important to convey the classic brand heritage and the positive hope for the future, so that our customers could sense the values and feel more optimistic when seeing the designs. Japanese classic patterns that signify happiness, long-life, etc were used to create an unprecedented type of seaweed as a result of the combination of a traditional product with a modern laser cutter.

I love how rebranding and repackaging of a product, and giving it a new identity. This is my reason for studying Graphic Communication in NAFA. I hope that one day, my ideas will help companies boost their sales, and hopefully have my works featured in magazine and design blogs. I want to create design that is both visually appealing and practical with a good rationale.