Japanese designer Ken Miki is noted for his ability to continually break new ground. His approach is to assemble the parts of the design process in much the same way that we piece together words when we speak. This method of ‘designing as we talk’ has brought him many honours.

For Miki, graphic design is a language that can be universally understood; it can cross cultural borderlines and create shared feelings. He likes to employ emotion in his designs and greatly enjoys incorporating witty tricks, such as skilful visual illusions, into his posters, packaging, building signs and other projects.

His thoughtful, literal and tactile work has been said to ‘inspire our five senses like rhythmic lyrics and extend beyond time and dimensions to reveal the possibility of communication with the subconscious’. Miki is a winner of multiple awards in Japan and other countries, including the Japan Graphic Designers Association Rookie of the Year, Japan Typography Association Annual Grand Prix, a New York Art Directors Club Special Award.

A member of Alliance Graphique Internationale, Miki is visiting professor at Osaka University of Arts. He has published several books, including ‘Selected Works 1994-2002′ and ‘Graphic Wave 3′, and his work is in the permanent collections of major museums and art centres in Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Hong Kong and the USA.