ABOUT KENJI EKUAN
The chairman and iconic symbol of the GK Design Group passed away on February 8th 2015. Mr. Ekuan was an ambassador for the design community and known throughout the world. He dreamed of big things and worked to accomplish them, as evidenced by his legacy of twelve design offices spread over four countries, a multitude of design awards, and scores of published books and articles. Mr. Ekuan simply loved design, he believed design had no limit in its ability to solve mans problems, and he made design his sole mission in life.
Mr. Ekuan’s life was full of experiences, rare to most people who even lived during the same period. His hometown of Hiroshima was the site of the first use of an atomic weapon; he often mentioned the striking sight of “nothing” where the city he was born in was suddenly gone, he also experienced the subsequent U.S. occupation. I never heard him speak bitterly about either event, he only spoke about his inspiration to help his country recover and restore a “usual” life for the people.
Mr. Ekuan trained as a Buddhist priest early in his life, I imagine this was a profound influence and it gave him an uncommon clarity about life, and how to use the gifts he was given. His spirituality was revealed in many of his works, and he often used ancient folklore when speaking about modern society.

He was also among the first group of Japanese to graduate from the U.S. design school (Art Center college of Design in Los Angeles.) Being away from Japan gave him perspective and insight about the uniqueness of his own country; which in time led to the forming of GK’s design philosophy. Ideas such as “Small but Powerful” and “Compact Culture” were often used in our design. His examination of the Japanese Bento Box in his book “The Aesthetics of the Japanese lunch box” and its relationship to Japan’s culture, is another such insight I feel was made possible by his time spent abroad. This book became the unofficial textbook of GK design.

Mr. Ekuan was a design pioneer through the formative years of the Industrial Design profession. He spent countless hours as the president of ICSID (International Council of Societies of Industrial Design) and JIDA (Japanese Industrial Design Association) in the promotion of Industrial Design to Industry and Academics around the world.

In 1957 Mr. Ekuan opened the doors of GK Design and seemingly never took a day off afterwards. It was truly his second family. In his later years, I sensed that many people thought of him as a design statesman of sorts, but inside of GK he was very active. His project “Flying High in the Sky” an exhibit in his hometown of Hiroshima, turned out to be his Swan Song. The exhibit included the life work of Mr. Ekuan and GK Design. The eclectic subjects spanned products of utility: motorcycles, trains, tractors, housing, etc. to the metaphysical such as his vision of utopia complete with a transcendent mechanical bird fashioned entirely from titanium and floating above a sea of glowing lotus flowers; this mechanical creatures purpose was to transport souls by soaring to heaven. His broad view of the world and the world beyond, is what made Mr. Ekuan unique and a fantastic thinker.
To those outside of the GK Design Group, he may forever be remembered as the designer of the Kikkoman Soy Sauce bottle, but for us, he was GK’s father.

Norman Kerechuk
President GK Design International Incorporated