Nendo Biography
Oki Sato, aka Nendo (1977 - ), was born in Toronto, Canada, in 1977. After graduating in Architecture from Waseda University in 2002, he founded the Nendo studio in Tokyo. The name derives from a Japanese term meaning "clay" and expresses his plastic and sculptural approach together with the concepts of ductility and playfulness. The Nendo studio is a team of forty young designers and architects engaged in the development of over two hundred projects a year. It stands out for its exceptional design freedom and the ability to create simple, practical and surprising objects and furnishings. In 2005 Nendo opened an office in Milan and in 2012 in Singapore. Nendo has entered into numerous collaborations with the main international design brands such as Bisazza, Moroso, Glas Italia, Georg Jensen, La Manufacture, Stellar Works, Desalto, Fritz Hansen, WonderGlass, Lasvit, Atelier Swarovski, Kartell, Nodus and Alias. The company's long collaboration with Cappellini was celebrated in 2015 with an exhibition in Paris. The collaboration resulted in the Ribbon stools, the Lucky carpet, the Peg bed, the Drop double-sided bookcases, the Bambi table, the Koeda and Tuta coat hangers. The collaboration with De Padova was also fruitful, giving life to the ISHI, Chab, Tetris and SAIL coffee tables. He collaborates on lighting design with Flos, Louis Poulsen, Axor and Oluce and has redesigned and reinterpreted the Harcourt collection of crystal stemware for Baccarat. Nendo has created shop interiors for Camper, Issey Miyake, Milan's Rinascente and Starbucks. In 2013 he created the Surface lamp for Louis Vuitton; portable and battery powered, it was the first of the French brand's furniture collection. In 2006 he was designated by Newsweek as one of the "100 most respected Japanese" and in 2012 he was named "Designer of the Year" by Wallpaper and Elle Decor and, in 2015, by Maison & Objet. In 2019 he was chosen as Designer of the Year by AW Architektur & Wohnen magazine. He has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the Good Design Award, German Design Award, Elle Deco International Design Award. Nendo's projects are exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs and at the Center Pompidou in Paris.
