Tokyo, Japan
Tokujin Yoshioka has commemorated the dark ten-year anniversary of the Fukushima earthquake and tsunami with the design of the torch for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Take one of his country’s darkest moments, he turned it into light.
“I designed the Olympic Torch in the wishes for peace and healing of hearts of those affected by the natural disasters,” he told Global Design News.
Famed for his technical skill, appreciation of modern materials, and a deep understanding of his country’s traditions and cultures, Yoshioka sculpted the Olympic torch based on the sakura flower, or cherry blossom, the national flower of Japan.
Its polyhedral shape of a cherry blossom reflects sunlight from different angles when the torchbearers are running with it.
But that sparkle might be a little more memorable for some of Japan’s citizens, as part of the torch is fashioned from recycled aluminium, first used in the construction of prefabricated housing units in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Yoshioka visited the Fukushima region back in 2015, and held an art workshop with children affected by the quake. According to the designer, the cherry blossoms they drew were all vibrant, as if they’re symbolizing the spirit of the people taking steps toward reconstruction, and projecting hopes for the future.
That moment served as what inspired the design for the torch.
The cherry blossoms they drew were all vibrant, as if they’re symbolizing the spirit of the people taking steps toward reconstruction, and projecting hopes for the future.
The process, however, wasn’t exactly child’s play.
Yoshioka employed high-tech aluminium extrusion manufacturing technology and precise cutting techniques to create a light, seamless torch, that’s beautiful, ecological, wonderfully symbolic, and easy to run with.
The temporary units used to house those affected by the disaster have been transformed into the Olympic torch, and communicate the steps taken toward reconstruction of the disaster-affected areas.
“What I designed is not merely the shape of the torch body, but most importantly, the form of the flame. Five separate flames emerge from flower petals and come together as one at the center of the torch, and it becomes a flame of Sakura as a symbol of peace,” he said.
According to the designer, the design must be done for the society rather than the economy where they produce and consume a mass number of goods.
Yoshioka believes that the designer is a creator, but also important for the designer to evaluate what not to make.
“As if sakura trees bloom across Japan, the sacred flame traverse across Japan, and I hope this narrative will engage people more and lights our way, he continued.”
Project: Tokujin Yoshioka’s Olympic torch
Designers: Tokujin Yoshioka Inc.
Client: 2020 Tokyo Olympics Committee