Since 2011, the Toronto Design Offsite Festival has featured a wealth of talent. From furniture to installation to architecture and more, artists and designers working in a range of media showcase exciting new work. Through our new series, Designer Spotlights, readers will have the chance to learn more about past exhibitors, as well as some more recent additions.
Japanese-born and Toronto-based artist Shogo Okada uses his unique prints to explore the world of print and digital media, with a focus on animation and cartoons. Okada hand draws, cuts, rearranges, and finally, uses silkscreening to create new works that hint to their original sources. He connects contemporary cultures with the enormous amount of information in our daily lives, while referencing the history and ethos of both.
How long have you been involved, and what are your favorite things about the TO DO Festival?
TO DO 2017 was my first time.
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
Everything in my everyday life could be the inspiration. But I’m very careful when I choose them because those inspirations are sort of random. There are an array of sources: comic books, animation, television shows, and billboard advertisements, as well as objects and architectural styles.
How would you describe your practice?
I was born in 1987 in Japan, and grew up with the culture of hip hop, BMX, and a lot of anime. Mainly, I learned how I can shift or change the original use of something into new and different things. I present something that I think is interesting to the viewer through my own cultural filter.