It seems a bit difficult matter. I still think music leads graphic design scene. Visuals follow the music trends such as sampling pieces from old time. However it hasn’t been so successful comparing to music because graphic works in the past time were too well done to modify. Techno music brought up a new style of graphic, though.

By the way, I haven’t seen extremely unique and cool visual works created by Japanese for while. Maybe, the time doesn’t demand for them but I feel some new movements have been started in somewhere invisible and it’s not only for graphic design. In a way, I think it’s due to the development of computers. Computers extend our body functions, for example, one more eye and one more hand, rather than replacing all other existing technics and tools. Well, I wonder the computer is that great or not, what do you think, Mr.Hachiga?

If I didn’t have computers and networks around me, it might be interesting in its own way but for me at this moment, it’s more interesting and fun with them. I think this is the present time.

I’m not so familiar with Macintosh but I’m interested in the way network exists, the way things goes and the editing of +81 which can’t be done without internet, and I like these environments.

In this circumstance, ‘handwork is bad’ or even a word of ‘analog (means ‘not computerised’ in Japan)’ doesn’t appear in conversations. It means none is conscious about computer or handwork. It’s not important at all for me and I believe for others as well. Nobody cares. What important is the design sense, balance, timing and humour.

What do you think of interactive media?

I think interactive media has many possibilities but it’s hard to find good works.
Actually when a medium which’s CD-ROM came out, too many poor quality works were produced and people have been cheated. There are many products almost fraud.

Currently this kind of situation seems to be overcome, so I’m looking forward for now on. Some really good works certainly exist and I’m expecting high quality works will increase more.

I’ve been hoping it really becomes so. I was attracted by interactive media such as CD-ROM because of the one reason which it’s a medium realise more ways of expressions than paper medium, although I wasn’t a person who liked computers so much.

I used to like hanging around clubs, and I found the clubs were such multimedia places. Music, type of customers and alcohol are equally important and they are in the good balance. The space was also interesting because of the existence of a very interactive relationship between DJ and customers. However magazines by the time were meeting their limits, so they didn’t have so much choices besides focusing on music. That’s why I wanted to try creating a magazine including all the important things around us such as graphic, music, words, scenario, rhythm and so on. This is quite close to the current idea of Lounge that is to mix comfortable things and I’m conscious of it. So, for GASBOOK, I put things not directly relating to CD-ROM. I’m paying my attention to the package. Although it’s not yet so good, I’m going to make it better and better.

I think you have been publishing very substantial magazines since Timing Zero to +81. Including me, many people have been influenced by your works. At the last, could you tell us what you noticed and things you found interesting through editing the latest issue of +81.

Each time, I try to improve the issue with changing contents and the ways of presenting. As you know, many magazines focus on photographs but I’ve been thinking of approaches which are not relied on only photographs. I think these paper media will also change their styles in the 21st century.

Although it’s true that a photograph is beautiful, easy to understand and a worldwide common language, it’s something wrong that all magazines become photo centred, isn’t it? What many magazines care about are photo and typography and somehow using photographs to cover the lack of their design and editing efforts. In other words, many designers are sticking to ideas like ‘design is to show photographs beautiful’. So, I’m planing to deal with this kind of situation in +81 now. The attitude of designers such as ‘photograph is everything’ has caused a reversed situation like ‘without photographs, I can’t design’. Don’t you think nowadays, there are many so called photo collections which rely on names of famous photographers? Of course, there are numbers of very impressive photo collections designed by many designers but I still think people are too conscious about photographs. That’s why I’m rather attracted by other approaches.

While most of magazines are more or less same, a magazine named ‘zavtone’ issued from Korinsya, the same publisher as +81, is really something. I feel a great power from this magazine even though I don’t quite understand some contents for myself. The latest issue of zavtone is highly impressive. Its power is growing terribly fast. No other magazines dash as zavtone does, and can’t. I really wish that new magazines and media in different approaches with this kind of power will come out.

For +81, I will continue to do what I can do to express ‘the way of +81’ with taking what I’ve mentioned into account. The most important thing is the editing which only +81 can do. Also, I’m very careful of contents because there are too many lies delivered by media lately. It seems to me that quite many people are still easily believe what media, such as magazines and TV say. This is something all media related creators should be aware of.
At the last, I don’t follow the styles which are in fashion.