#88 August 18, 2026

Remembering Teruo Kurosaki and the Spirit of Freedom

I feel deeply saddened by the passing of Teruo Kurosaki, the founder of IDÉE. He was a genius at discovering young talent and, as far as I know, the greatest connoisseur in Japan. "Would you write an article for me?" was the first message I ever received from him. Even though I was completely unknown at the time, he asked me to contribute to a mysterious magazine he was launching.

Without quite knowing why, I was drawn to the sense that air seemed to flow freely only around him. That began a long relationship in which we created and contemplated many things together. We often found ourselves interested in the very same things. When I thought Portland was interesting, he had already begun exploring and experimenting there.

He seemed to possess a special eye for spotting talent. He once lent an umbrella at a pedestrian crossing to Marc Newson, who was studying in Japan from Australia, which led to their friendship and Kurosaki commissioning designs from him. That encounter became a catalyst that propelled Marc to become the world's leading product designer, and hearing Kurosaki share that story was always a delightful highlight. Later on, I also worked with Marc on the sake brand IWA.

Another exhilarating story was how he discovered Serge Mouille lighting fixtures among piles of junk at a Paris flea market, which sparked the worldwide reappraisal of Mouille's work.

Last year, we had fun creating a soba restaurant and a bakery together at ESHIKOTO in Fukui. Our favorite conversation over drinks recently was an idea to create something like Taliesin in our local Aoyama neighborhood to nurture young designers. He was an irreplaceable mentor who taught me the true value of freedom.