Design with Japan 2025 - Shared Ground

Shared Ground — a Dialogue between Tradition and Design

Located within the historic Mino district, Tajimi has long been a hub of ceramic production and experimentation. Its legacy, rooted in rich clay deposits and natural water sources, continues to define the region’s identity and inspire global design collaborations. Under the umbrella concept Shared Ground, two exhibitions celebrated Tajimi as a crossroad where artisans and international designers from different cultures collaborate, bridging past and present, East and West, handcraft and technology.

From October 10 to 19, 2025, Shared Ground presented two complementary exhibitions—Design with Japan by Noelani Rutz and Anthony Guex at CIRCLE and Tile Works by Tajimi Custom Tiles next door at (Place) by method in Shibuya. The exhibition offered a window onto the work of international designers who developed projects in collaboration with local partners, presenting objects, prototypes, and products—each piece reflecting a conversation between Japan’s ceramic heritage and contemporary design from Switzerland and beyond.

Over 500 visitors attended the ten-day exhibition, exploring how this evolving dialogue across cultures can yield new approaches to materiality, sustainability, and form.

Design with Japan by Noelani Rutz & Anthony Guex

This exhibition presented the culmination of a year-long collaboration between Swiss designers and local manufacturers from Gifu Prefecture. Noelani Rutz and Anthony Guex presented poetic and sculptural protypes that blended Japanese tradition with Swiss contemporary design.

The exhibition was presented by the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan and the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, in collaboration with Tajimi Custom Tiles, Miyama Co., Ltd., and Method Inc.; with the support of Presence Switzerland, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA); sponsored by Création Baumann Japan Ltd., Sonova Japan Co., Ltd., and USM U. Schaerer Sons K.K.

Fleeting Landscapes and Tile Shelving System by Noelani Rutz

Bridging the winter landscapes of Switzerland and Japan, Noelani Rutz’s Fleeting Landscapes explores snow’s dual nature—its permanence in memory and its impermanence in reality. Working with Sugiura Seito Co., Ltd., she transformed this ephemeral motif into a series of timeless ceramic tiles, “Fleeting Landscapes,” that preserve the transient beauty of snow through clay.

For her “Tile Shelving System,” the tiles, produced using locally sourced clay,  are extruded in an L-shaped profile and left unglazed. Subtle variations in the clay colour and the wide range of tones produced during kiln firing are left intentionally. In collaboration with Marusen Chemical Industrial Co., Ltd., this approach celebrates the raw character of the material while maintaining a refined, architectural quality.

Noelani Rutz

Noelani Rutz is a Swiss product designer based in Zurich. She graduated with honors from ECAL/École cantonale d’art de Lausanne (University of Art & Design Lausanne), where she worked as a teaching assistant the following two years. After gaining experience working for Shigeki Fujishiro in Tokyo and Jörg Boner productdesign in Zürich, she is now focusing on her own practice. With a keen eye for detailed simplicity, her hands-on approach commits to a thoughtful combination of traditional craft, material research and pragmatic solutions. @noelanirutz

Tea Set by Anthony Guex

In collaboration with renowned maker Miyama Co., Ltd., Anthony Guex developed a tea set that brings a bold new perspective to traditional porcelain. Traditionally perceived as delicate and thin, his approach sought to embrace density, volume, and sculptural geometry — shifting our perception of what porcelain can be.
Minimal yet architectural, each piece balances strength and elegance, blending Swiss precision with Japanese craftsmanship.

Anthony Guex

Anthony Guex is a Swiss product and interior designer based in Lausanne with a focus on product, furniture, and interior design. With over seven years of experience as a cabinetmaker and foreman in the wood industry, he studied interior design at the HEAD-Genève and earned a Master’s degree in product design from ECAL/École cantonale d’art de Lausanne (University of Art & Design Lausanne) in 2015. Anthony divides his time between his design studio and his role as Artistic Deputy at ECAL. He collaborates with national and international brands such as New Tendency, Okro, Tectona, ECAL, and Fogo Island Workshops of the Shorefast Foundation in Newfoundland, Canada. @anthonyguex

About the Programme: A bridge between Switzerland and Japan

Design with Japan is a collaborative programme initiated by the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia in collaboration with the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan. he initiative connects Swiss emerging designers with Japanese manufacturers, fostering an intercultural environment that encourages experimentation, sustainable production, knowledge exchange and pushes the boundaries of design. This collaboration comes to life through the development of a series of prototypes, a project exhibition and media exposure.

Design with Japan has shown to be a valuable format, through trust and collaborative spirite, all stakeholders could meet to bring tangible projects to life.

While the first edition of the programme has ended, the Design with Japan programme will continue in Tajimi with two new studios, Gini Moynier and Studio Carolien Niebling, for 2025-2026, further strengthening ties between the two countries through design and craftsmanship.

More info: https://vitality.swiss/en/articles/2024/design-with-japan

Design with Japan 2024–2025 edition

Selection Committee

• Tsuyoshi Matsuzawa, Managing Director, E&Y Co., Ltd. / Professor, Osaka University of Arts Junior College / Good Design Award Jury Member
• David Glättli, Creative Director and Designer
• Laetitia de Allegri, Designer

Curator & Mentor: David Glättli and Marie Mayoly
Project Lead & Curation: Irene Yamaguchi
Graphic Design: Sebastian Fehr
Photography: Kenta Hasegawa
PR: Naoko Takegata / daily press

Presented by: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia & Embassy of Switzerland in Japan
In collaboration with: Tajimi Custom Tiles, Miyama Co., Ltd., and method inc.
With the support of: Presence Switzerland and the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA)
Exhibition Sponsored by: Création Baumann Japan Ltd., Sonova Japan Co., Ltd., and USM U. Schaerer Sons K.K.

More info: https://vitality.swiss/en/articles/2024/dwj