Paper Collective [Designer of the Week] Marina Ayashiro (Japan)

2 days ago
2 min read

A hub where the creativity of artists from around the world converges: Paper Collective, the poster brand hailing from Copenhagen. This week’s featured designer is Marina Ayashiro.

Marina Ayashiro grew up amidst the rich, atmospheric charm of the ancient capital, Kyoto, and is currently based in the vibrant city of Osaka. While she received formal training in graphic design, her expressive style was decisively shaped by her travels across Europe.

Immersed in European cityscapes and color palettes where tradition and innovation coexist, she established a unique, self-taught style of free expression unconstrained by conventional frameworks. Today, she continues to create works rich in narrative, drawing from a distinctive perspective that fuses the discipline of design with artistic intuition.

The source of her creative activities lies in her focus on the ``loved things'' that are all around us. The starting point of her creative process is to scoop up the small but warm "fragments of everyday life" that are often overlooked in daily life.

Deepening Inspiration: Nature rich in vibrant color, seasonal foods that nourish both body and soul, and the striking landscapes or adorable animals encountered by chance during her travels. She observes the beauty and joy inherent in each of these elements with a tender, appreciative eye, transforming them into something new through the unique filter of her own sensibilities.

A Diverse Range of Artistic Expression: While grounded in graphic design skills honed at the forefront of the commercial design industry, the artist’s output is remarkably varied. From illustrations characterized by a light, airy touch to paintings rich in texture and deeply moving ceramics, they demonstrate their talent across a wide spectrum of genres, transcending traditional boundaries.

What stands out is the perfect harmony between the logical, sure sense of form characteristic of a graphic designer and the free, vibrant sensibility of an artist.

By allowing qualities that might seem contradictory—meticulous composition and gentle emotion—to coexist within a single work, she evokes in the viewer both a comforting sense of reassurance and a striking, fresh sense of surprise.

Fruit arranged on a dining table, or the blue of the sky glimpsed while traveling.

Through calculated color schemes and soft textures, the "everyday moments" she captures are elevated into special stories that transcend mere depiction.

Once displayed as a poster, the artwork envelops the entire room in gentle warmth, bringing a quiet sense of peace to the hearts of those who live there.