Coal (Mitsubishi Mining Co., Ltd. Poster) 石炭（三菱鉱業 ポスター）
Date
Credits
- Kenji Ito 2 Designer
Format
- Poster 2670
Techniques
- printing 969
Dimensions
Locations Made
- Japan 578
Created in the early 1950s for Mitsubishi Mining Co., Ltd., this poster is a masterful piece by Kenji Ito, a pioneer who shaped the landscape of postwar Japanese modern design.
At the time, Japan was moving rapidly toward high economic growth. "Coal" was the literal fuel of this transformation, the energy source that powered the nation's modernization.
Ito used sharp geometric lines and his vivid color palette to show the heavy, traditional energy industry with a sense of science and the future.
Moving far beyond standard commercial advertising, this work stands as an intersection of art and industry in postwar graphic design. It left a lasting impression when it was exhibited at the "World Poster Exhibition" at the National Museum of Modern Art in 1953.
