Documentary

Takumi - A 60,000-Hour Story on the Survival of Human Craft

Press Pack February 2019

Contents

1. Press Release (p3-4)2. Overview of Documentary (p5-7)3. Biographies and Interviews:

a. Clay Jeter, Director (p8-10)b. Shigeo Kiuchi, Carpenter, Kongo Gumi (p11-14)c. Hisato Nakahigashi, Head Chef, Miyamasou (p15-17)d. Nahoko Kojima, Paper Cut Artist (p18-21)e. Katsuaki Suganuma – Inspection Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant

(p22-23)f. Biographies for the contributing experts and documentary

narrator (p30-31)

Appendix: a) Hideya Kojima, Engine Assembly Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant (p24-

25)b) Osamu Tanaka, Paint Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant (p26-27)c) Katsumi Kobayashi, Assembly Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant (p28-29)

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Press Release

6TH March 2019

Could you become a Takumi? In Japan it takes 60,000 hours to reach the highest level of craftsmanship – new documentary

reveals- Lexus to distribute a new documentary on Amazon Prime Video

that poses the question of whether the most devoted craftsmen and women will survive in an increasingly ‘AI powered’ world?

In the West it’s often considered that it takes 10,000 hours of study for the average person to become an expert in their subject. But in Japan you’re not considered a master of your craft until you’ve spent 60,000 hours refining your skills.  That’s the equivalent of working 8 hours a day, 250 -days a year for 30 years.

A fascinating documentary unveils the world of the Takumi – the highest level of artisan in Japan. The visually-stunning character-driven portrait, made by Chef’s Table Director, Clay Jeter for luxury automotive brand Lexus, is due for release on Prime Video, through the Prime Video Direct self-publishing service, on 19th March 2019 globally.

Takumi - A 60,000-hour story on the survival of human craft - follows four Japanese artisans who are dedicating their lives to their crafts, including a double Michelin starred chef, a traditional paper cutting artist, an automotive master craftsman and a carpenter for one of the oldest construction companies in the world.

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The documentary, which premiered at the DOC NYC film festival in New York, is unique in that the medium is also the message. There will be a feature length version plus a ‘60,000’ hour cut which loops scenes of each Takumi’s essential skills of their craft they repeat over and over again to highlight the hours, days and years of practice involved.

Narrated by Former British Museum Director Neil Macgregor and including interviews from world experts in craft and AI, it asks how we will honor and preserve human craft as simultaneously we design machines to act more precisely and faster than humans ever can.

“In the time period we live in, which is so attention-deficit, we all feel like we don’t have enough time.” says Nora Atkinson Curator of Craft at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. “So, the thousands of hours it really takes to become a skilled craftsman is something that a smaller sphere of artists will experience.”

By 2050, it’s estimated that machines will be capable of surpassing human performance in virtually every field* “We’re in the midst of exponential progress,” says Martin Ford Rise of The Robots: Technology and The Threat of a Jobless Future author. He adds that this rate of transformation hasn’t been seen before. “In the next 10 years, we’re going to see 10,000 years of progress.”

Will human craft disappear as artificial intelligence reaches beyond our limits? Or will this cornerstone of our culture survive and become more valuable than ever? This documentary looks at how to take the long road to excellence in a world that’s constantly striving for shortcuts.

“The essence of Takumi is to gain a sublime understanding of the nuances of a particular art.” Says Nahoko Kojima, the paper cut artist who appears in the documentary. “To be focused and spend countless hours on one thing,

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and to carry on. It requires one to empty the mind and focus in a way that is simply not possible when still acquiring a skill.”

“The concept of Takumi has physically and philosophically been at the core of the Lexus brand since it started 30 years ago.” Said Spiros Fotinos, Head of Global Brand at Lexus International. “Our Takumi masters have over 60,000 hours (30+ working years) of experience developing their craft. To celebrate the brand’s anniversary year, we wanted to capture the essence of Takumi – and their 60,000-hour journey - on film.”

Viewers can enjoy the 54-minute version or sit and watch the 60,000-hour version on www.takumi-craft.com that allows them to soak up the level of dedication and commitment it takes to achieve a special kind of mastery.

The documentary, created by The&Partnership London, will be available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Instant, Google Play and iTunes.

--- ENDS ---

Overview of Documentary

What does it take to become an expert in your chosen field? Malcolm Gladwell claimed it took 10,000 hours – based on practising the same skill for 90 minutes a day for 10 years – but in Japan they believe it takes even longer.  A new documentary, Takumi: A 60,000 hour story on the survival of human craft, examines the idea that it takes 60,000 or more hours to become a Takumi  (expert artisan) – and introduces us to four Japanese workers, including a double Michelin starred chef, a traditional paper cutting artist, an automotive master craftsman and a carpenter for one of the oldest construction companies in the world, who are dedicating their lives to their crafts.

The documentary is unique in that the medium is also the message – there will be a 54-minute feature length version available on Amazon Prime Video (or insert local market equivalent) plus a ‘60,000’ hour cut on www.takumi-

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craft.com which loops scenes of each Takumi’s essential skills of their craft they repeat over and over again to highlight the hours, days and years of practice involved.

Narrated by art historian Neil MacGregor, former director of both the UK National Gallery and the British Museum, the film asks how will craftspeople survive in the future? How do we honor and protect human craft when technology and AI is advancing so rapidly? By 2050, it’s estimated that machines will be capable of surpassing human performance in virtually every field. Artificial intelligence can learn in an instant what a human learns in a lifetime.

“We’re in the midst of exponential progress,” says futurist Martin Ford, who provides expert commentary in the documentary. He adds that this rate of transformation hasn’t been seen before. “In the next 10 years, we’re going to see 10,000 years of progress.”

Will human craft disappear as artificial intelligence reaches beyond our limits? Or will this cornerstone of our culture survive and become more valuable than ever? This documentary looks at how to take the long road to excellence in a world that’s constantly striving for shortcuts.

If ever there was an example of a dedication to a craft, it’s carpenter Shigeo Kiuchi, 68, the first subject of the documentary. Shigeo joined Kongō Gumi, a temple-making company, as a teenager, and has no intention of retiring.

Shigeo is just a small part of his company’s phenomenal history. Kongō Gumi is the world’s oldest existing company, founded in 578 when Prince Shotoku commissioned the building of Shitennoji, Japan’s first Buddhist temple. It’s been in the hands of the same family ever since and today a 41st generation family member sits on the Kongō Gumi board.

“I see myself as like a custodian,” explains Shigeo. “I learned from my father who worked here before me, and now I’m passing on the skills to future generations. I believe that Kongo Gumi has survived for 14 centuries because from its first generation until now Kongo Gumi has maintained its knowledge and skills.”

The company has seen its temples and shrines hit by earthquakes, typhoons, fire and World War II bombings, but still it continues to work with traditional carpentry techniques - such as joining wood without the use of nails.

Takumi also introduces us to Hisato Nakahigashi, who runs Miyamasou a two-Michelin star restaurant in Kyoto. Hisato is a fourth generation kaiseki (multi-course dinner) chef whose great grandfather founded Miyamasou, an inn for pilgrims to stay when visiting the 12th century temple on which the restaurant shares its grounds.

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For Hisato, his turning point came when he was 20,000 hours into his Takumi journey. His father died unexpectedly at the age of 55, and Hisato, then 28, had been working on his craft in restaurants overseas. “I wasn’t sure whether I was ready to take over Miyamasou,” says Hisato. “I had always planned to train at my father’s side, but that was no longer possible.”

Explains Clay Jeter, the documentary’s director: “Nakhahigashi made the decision to come home and continue the legacy and he’s really elevated the restaurant to something extraordinary.” 

Every morning, Hisato goes fishing in the local river and foraging for local herbs and mountain vegetables. He says he “gives thanks” to nature for supplying his food, something he’s been doing since he was a child. “When I was growing up, my playmate was always the surrounding nature. In school, if I wanted a snack on my way home, I would find something edible. I would pick wild vegetables or berries. The nature that surrounds Miyamasou has always nurtured me.”  The third subject of the documentary is artist Nahoko Kojima, aged 36. A paper artist, she started learning her craft at the tender age of five from her art tutor. The turning point in her career came around 40,000 hours into her journey when she decided to move on from the traditional approach to paper cutting, which involves making flat pieces of art, and leave her mark by instead creating 3D sculptures.

Now based in London, her extraordinary pieces of art have been exhibited across the world and have been seen in locations such as the Saatchi Gallery in London, the flagship Bulgari store in Tokyo (she was commissioned to create sculptures in stores across the world by the brand) and recently, a life-sized Blue Whale in Bangkok, the largest 3D paper cut sculpture ever created.

 The documentary also introduces us to the Takumi at Lexus – staff such as Katsuaki Suganuma, who has 32 years of experience under his belt, working for more than 60,000 hours. Katsuaki, who’s a Takumi in charge of the final inspection line at Lexus, has seen big changes in terms of technology, with the introduction of artificial intelligence and robots. But he’s proof that humans still play a vital role in car manufacturing – they are the ones that understand the human senses and what it feels like to sit in a car. The documentary takes us behind the scenes at the 4million square metre factory plant at Tahara in Aichi, Japan, which is regarded as one of the world’s most technologically advanced production facilities in the world.  The documentary examines how traditional crafts and skills can still have meaning in today’s society.  “The origins of craft are really the origins of human civilisation”, says Nora Atkinson, a curator of craft at the Smithsonian

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American Art Museum. “Craft has always existed, since human kind has existed we’ve been creating things, mainly objects of utility. Really, when you think about the history of craft, up until the Industrial Revolution, all things were created by hand.” Dedicating time to crafts can have enormous benefits. “People spending a long period of time to perfect it to get it right, put their humanity into it – there is something really meditative about it,” adds Nora. ‘In the time period we live in, which is so attention-deficit, we all feel like we don’t have enough time,” she adds. “So the thousands of hours it really takes to become a skilled craftsman is something that a smaller sphere of artists will experience” The documentary also asks how AI will help these Takumi to expand their skills.

Viewers can enjoy the 54-minute version or sit and watch the 60,000-hour version play out on www.takumi-craft.com allowing them to soak up the level of dedication and commitment it takes to achieve a special kind of mastery.

The documentary will be available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Instant, Google Play and iTunes.

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Clay Jeter Documentary Director

Biography American director Clay Jeter has worked on projects such as the Emmy-nominated Chef’s Table, the first original Netflix documentary series, and feature film Jess + Moss, which made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival. He talks about his experiences of filming.

Interview:

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We’re meeting people who are extremely dedicated to their crafts in this documentary. What was it about these Japanese artisans and workers that makes them so committed? There’s a word in Japanese, otsukaresama, that translates as ‘you must be tired, please take a rest’. They might say this to colleagues or strangers, and while in the west we might think of this as an insult, in Japan it’s a way of saying you appreciate all the hard work someone has done. It’s a way of showing thanks and respect – and that dedication is valued.

We are often brought up to try a bit of everything, we might try various careers or have different jobs at the same time, but these people have the belief that doing the same thing over and over, even if it just makes slight incremental improvements, is the way to live a happy and satisfied life.So to achieve their level of expertise, they practice the same tasks and skills repeatedly…This is what we were fascinated with from the beginning of making the documentary. For us it sounds insane, we can’t fathom that level of commitment, but they didn’t see it as a sacrifice.  At Lexus they have this word called kaizen, which means ‘improvement’ and it’s all about finding these minute ways to make things better and more efficient all the time.How does the 60,000 hours narrative work within the documentary? We start by meeting the master carpenter, Shigeo, and he talks to us about his ‘zero hours’ experience, right back from when he was learning from his father. We go to the temples, see the craftsman and learn about his company Kongō Gumi, which has the most incredible history. Then we’ll move on to the chef, who will talk about his 20,000 hours moment, when his father died and he took over the family restaurant. We filmed with him in his restaurant and when he was out foraging in the mountains. And then we meet the artist Nahoko whose turning point came at her 40,000 hours moment. The stories of these Takumi allow the documentary to question whether some crafts will become extinct, and how these people are keeping them alive.And then the documentary takes a gear change by moving onto the Lexus Takumi – where it’s like being in a space station. It’s a place where robots are helping other robots perform tasks – and yet we still find this integral role of the human being. While humans are less precise than AI and technology, they still have senses such as sight and hearing that technology cannot yet replicate. A robot can’t tell you exactly what it feels like to sit in a car. The documentary will also have experts sharing their views on expertise and technology.You start the documentary by introducing us to the carpenter Shigeo. What struck you about his story? The fact that Kongō Gumi is the oldest existing company in the world is

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incredible. It’s around 1400 years old, and began life when a Prince was inspired by paintings he’d seen of temples and wanted to commission one. I feel that in this day people are always looking to do something new, and here’s Shigeo talking about a set of principles that have been guiding his company for millennia. His attitude was that if he could just be the custodian of the wisdom and knowledge of his craft, and he could pass it on to future craftsmen, then that would be enough. He felt that if he could only make things slightly better, then that would be a huge success. It really struck me that he was putting his life’s energy into this work, and it was a company that had come through wars and years of anti-Buddhist regimes, and financial crisis, but has kept going.You’ve filmed with chefs on Chef’s Table. What was special about Hisato Nakahigashi? This chef really introduced me to the Japanese concept of omotenashi. It’s a hard word to define, but describes an outstanding level of hospitality, of being incredibly thoughtful towards your guests. For example, if you’re a returning guest to their restaurant, they would have taken notes so they’ll remember whether you are right- or left-handed and will rearrange plates to accommodate that. Or if you ate a meal and didn’t eat one type of food on your plate, they’ll remember not to serve that type of food again. He carries a sense of gratitude from the moment he goes out foraging – he’ll go and pick mushrooms in the autumn, incredible herbs in the spring, and then summer vegetables and bamboo shoots. And as he does it, he says he’s giving thanks to the earth and the seasons, and he wants to carry that sense of generosity and gratitude to the customer so they have a deeper level of feeling when they’re eating the food.The artist Nahoko Kojima is probably the most solitary of our Takumi in the sense of how she works…She’s such an artist. She’s not really interested in other artists, or the implications of what she’s doing, she has this inherent drive within her to do things in her own unique way and create something special. She’s taken an art form that has been around for 1,000 years, and doing something differently by taking paper-cutting into 3D and creating these paper sculptures. She says she fell in love with the washi paper (a traditional Japanese paper known for its strength and resistance to tearing) and felt that the work she was doing in 2D was not doing justice to the paper. She has to start an entire project again if she makes just one slip-up on the paper-cutting…She trusts the paper and knows how to work with it. And I think that’s enabled her to see a frontier where everyone else has seen a wall. There will always be people who say you shouldn’t touch a traditional art form, but she felt creatively blocked and says she needed to do something different.And how did the Lexus Takumi compare? They really have to commit themselves to one part of an incredibly complicated process. It’s a behemoth of a factory, with lots of departments,

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and they are all working in different specialities towards the same goal. They are creating practical vehicles that are also like works of art. The company’s respect for their Takumi is genuine – they really appreciate the skills and knowledge that their staff have. They also embrace the idea of omotenashi. They really try to think about what it’s like to be in the customer’s shoes – what the customer will see when they sit in the car, or hear when the door opens and closes perfectly. The Lexus Takumi I spoke to all knew that as soon as they joined the company it was a job for life.What were the biggest challenges of filming? The Lexus Tahara plant is amazing visually, there’s so much that happens there. But just to film in the paint department, for example, everything that goes in has to go through multiple levels of clean rooms and covered in plastic. And you can’t touch anything. We put up a light at one point and a robot detected a slight change and it just automatically shut the whole line down. It’s a working factory so we had to film around them producing all these vehicles every day. Also, Nahoko’s paper sculptures are incredibly delicate. She was in a tiny traditional Japanese house laying this whole whale sculpture out. And we needed to get a 30ft crane above to film, so we set down a track going through the sliding wooden doors.

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Shigeo Kiuchi, Age 68Master Carpenter, Kongo Gumi

Biography

One of Shigeo’s earliest memories is of being taken to the Shitennō-ji Temple with his father, a master carpenter at Kongō Gumi who was working on the temple’s restoration. “I was seven years old and I remember climbing up these railings which were about 20 meters high. Back then, there were no safety standards, and people used to just jump from one part of the temple roof to another. I remember it being quite scary.”

This was an introduction to a company that would be a big part of his life. Shigeo followed in his father’s footsteps. Now, at the age of 68, he’s still working at the company and passing on his skills to younger generations.

Shigeo is part of a company with an extraordinary history. Founded in Osaka in 578, Kongō Gumi is the oldest continually operating company in the world.

Kongō Gumi began after Prince Shotoku commissioned Japan’s first Buddhist temple, Shitennō-ji. The Prince hired three skilled craftsmen from Baekje, a former Kingdom which now forms part of Korea. One of these craftsmen was Shigemitsu Kongō, who remained in Osaka.

Shigemitsu Kongō continued to build temples and his descendants have continued to work for the company. Today, a 41st generation member of the family sits on the Kongō Gumi board.

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The original Shitennō-ji temple has been rebuilt eight times by Kongō Gumi having been damaged by earthquakes, typhoons, fire and a World War II bombing. Kongō Gumi have been involved in the creation of many famous buildings in Japan, including the 16th century Osaka Castle.

By Japanese tradition, the family name could be continued in families that produced no suitable male heir by adopting a son-in-law who would take on the Kongō name.

The company has been an early supporter of women in the workplace too. During the Showa Depression (1930-32) Japan experienced its worst financial crisis in modern history, and Kongō Gumi’s 37th president, Jiichi Kongō committed suicide because he felt unable to provide for his family. His widow Yoshie stepped in and became the first female to lead the company.

The company has continued with a tradition of passing on skills to the younger members of staff, and continuing its legacy. A new worker at Kongō Gumi was expected to undergo a 10-year apprenticeship to perfect the required carpentry techniques, followed by another 20 years of training to become a field supervisor carpenter. But even then, Shigeo says “You might be skilled in just one area of carpentry, you can’t ever be a Takumi of everything.”

The company has expanded to work on residential and commercial properties – and was the first in Japan to use CAD software to design temples. And since 2006, the company has operated as a subsidiary of Takamatsu Construction Group. They never forget their beginnings though – on the 1st and 15th of each month, Kongō Gumi employees still gather for a small prayer ceremony to give thanks for Prince Shōtoku.

Interview

You started at the company aged 18 as a direct apprentice of your father. What was that like? Well because I was in the position of learning from my father, I was always saying yes to whatever he was telling me, which didn’t really happen much at home!

Did you have any choice but to go into this profession?I wasn’t even aware that there was any choice. I always knew this would be my path in life, so that was always on my conscience. There were times when after we graduated school, my friends were able to do all sorts of occupations and I felt kind of envious towards them at one time.

Is it true that apprentices used to go and live with the Takumi who were training them at work?

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Yes, in my father’s generation, we did have young apprentices come to live in our house. Nowadays we can’t do that anymore because the Japanese labor law doesn’t allow that. Under the labor law, the total amount of time you are spending at the house of the chief carpenter counts as working hours

Do the apprentices have to be extra respectful to the Takumi?It’s one leadership structure, meaning that everybody has to listen to their boss, no matter what situation you’re in.

Even if you disagree…You never say that you disagree. If the chief carpenter says that the crow is white, then everybody has to agree that it is white!

What does being a Takumi mean to you?The word Takumi in our industry, the carpenters who work with our hands, we call them Takumi. But to become a real Takumi, it takes a lot of time. It takes a lifetime to get to the top, the pinnacle of being a Takumi.

What are the best moments of your job? I feel like a sense of achievement throughout.

What are the most challenging parts of building a temple?When you build something, because the building materials are so heavy, it starts to slowly sink into the ground with the passing of time. When we build something, we’re careful to do it according to the blue print design and we want the whole shape to stay the same as it is in the blueprint.

Your work requires a lot of skill…We believe that wood is alive, so for example, it’s different to working with steel because you might think, ‘I’ll cut it to this size’ but wood may shrink or get bigger due to the environment. So, we have to assume that a length of wood could change.

What’s the atmosphere like on a construction site for a temple? Actually, we are very chatty, and there are lots of jokes. For the construction of a temple, we have a process. So, if we’re working on a five-story pagoda, the first story, is when you create something new, so you’re very chatty with each other and you ask each other’s opinions. But after you build the first story, then you go on to the second, third, fourth and fifth. And that will be the same repetition of the first story, meaning that everyone is chatty from the first story, but from the second story, everybody starts to be silent because they know what’s happening next and it’s very repetitive. It’s like climbing a mountain, it’s not boring, because you are seeing the peak and you know it’s going to be over.

What’s been the most impressive temple that you’ve worked on?

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That’s impossible to answer, because all the shapes and types of temple are different.

What’s a typical day like for a carpenter?I’m managing my group so I don’t work on the construction sites anymore. But when I did, I would get up at about 4.30am then I would have to get to the construction site earlier than everyone else to set things up. We would start work at 8am, have a break at 10am. And then between 12 and 1pm we would have lunch. We would have another break at 3pm and keep working to 6pm.

That’s a lot of hours…Right now we have the weekends off, Saturdays and Sundays, back then the only times we got off were two days per month. But you know it was a job that I wanted to do. I was young and I didn’t get tired so easily and I didn’t really want days off back then.

Do you feel that to become a real Takumi you need to have reached a certain number of hours?I think when you are first starting off if you are a young person, for the first three years, you will be taught by a Takumi, working alongside him and absorbing his knowledge. We would be teaching these people carefully for three years, to teach them what’s dangerous and what’s not. And then in the fifth year into his career, he is mostly able to do what he needs to do, and maybe after 10 years into his career, he is able to set things up and possibly lead his whole team. The 10th year is a start line for a career that lasts forever, because that career depends on how well you manage your subordinates.

Japan has suffered its share of natural disasters How do you earthquake-proof a temple?If we rebuild it under the same construction of what they did several hundred thousand years ago then it’s fine. If we try to replace it with a new method then it’s not earthquake-proof anymore

Why is that? It has to do with the materials. For example, a five-story pagoda was made of wood and was earthquake-proof from the ancient days. It was exposed to fire, so they started using non-flammable materials on the pagoda, but then that doesn’t become earthquake-proof anymore.

Do you think technology and machinery will have a big impact on carpenters’ work in the future? I think we will use machines for bigger tasks, but with the finishing process, everything will still need to be done by hand. I think that the more time you spend working on something, the longer that structure will last. If you try to hurry that process, it won’t last so long.

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Do you see yourself retiring?Carpenters don’t have a retirement. I want to carry on working.

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Hisato Nakahigashi, Age 49Two Michelin-starred Chef

Biography

Hisato Nakahigashi is the fourth-generation owner of Miyamasou, an inn that was originally built to serve visitors travelling to the nearby Daihizan Bujoji temple. Today, the two Michelin star restaurant is worth a pilgrimage in its own right. Hisato combines skills he picked up at restaurants in Paris and across France and Tokyo, with a love of traditional Japanese cuisine. Every day he and his team go foraging for ingredients in the local countryside, finding wild vegetables growing underneath the snow in winter, fresh fish from the local river, and boar, bear and venison from the wider area. Even their chopsticks are local – carved from the branches of chestnut trees.

Interview

What are your earliest memories of the restaurant?I remember foraging for wild grass with my father when I was 10 – I got my love of food then.

Did you always know you’d taken on the family business? I didn’t. I’d thought of going into other fields, but my father died when I was 20 and that started me thinking about taking over the family restaurant. I’d been working as a chef in France when he passed away. I learned a lot from my time in France – the chefs I worked with were so proud of their culture and cuisine, and I thought I should bring that sense of pride to my own restaurant. From France I went to Tokyo and then three years later I took over and started building on what my father had achieved.

How do your cooking techniques differ to your father’s?

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My father only cooked food that was indigenous to Hanase, so was more strictly traditional. As I’ve worked in both France and the United States, my food has global influences too.

What is unique about the food that you prepare? I always watch the whole life of the ingredients that grow around this area, and then I try to make those ingredients come to life in the dishes that I cook.

Where do you source your food? Usually the fish is caught in the river right by the restaurant. In the old days, the road that passes by Hanese was used to bring from fish from the sea to the Emperor in Kyoto, and we still use fish from the Sea of Japan at Wakasa Bay today. In terms of the meat dishes, I’ll use boar, bear, deer, venison and duck.

When you go out foraging in the snow, for example, how hard is it to get ingredients? When it snows in the winter, I’ll usually dig through the snow and find the wild vegetables underneath. Also, at the foot of the mountains there is an area that gets less snow, so I’ll find vegetables that are harvested there. Kyoto also produces lots of local vegetables in winter.

And what about during extreme weather conditions such as scorching summers? In Hanase, we’re looking because the area is so rich with vegetation. We’re surrounded by lots of trees, and trees hold lots of water in their roots. When a drought is happening the tree actually produces water underground. It’s like nature protects itself, so it’s not really affected by the extreme weather. The only problem we’re having is the wild deer, as they are growing in numbers and we’ve had to start fencing off areas to protect vegetation.

Do you consider yourself as a Takumi? I wouldn’t describe myself as a Takumi. But if you want to become Takumi, the most important thing is never to give up, especially if you are doing something for others. You just have to keep on improving, to bring your craft to a level it hasn’t been to before.

Your restaurant was initially set up by your ancestor as a place for pilgrims to visit on the way to your temple… The food I serve at Miyamasou is based on the food that was served at the temple in the old days. When the winter had ended and spring arrived, the noble class would come to Kyoto to visit the temple in the spring, and they’d be served food which had been foraged from the surrounding area.

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What do you think it is about the Japanese people and culture that makes them so dedicated to their chosen careers? You’ll often find Japanese people staying in the same job and doing the same thing over and over. They’re patient, making progress little by little, so they can be the very best.

Do you want your style of cooking to carry on in future generations? I don’t want people to forget about the food and where it comes from. There is a word in Japan that we say before we eat, itadakimasu, which is a way of giving thanks to mother nature for giving us the food. It’s about appreciating how much was sacrificed to make a meal possible, every herb, every plant. I don’t want people to forget to show their appreciation for this.

What types of food do you forage in each season? In spring, I’ll find bamboo grasses that are growing up underneath the thawing snow. We look for small fish called takahaya (minnow) that swim in the clean river near the restaurant. In summer we’ll have ayu (sweetfish), berries and fresh water seaweed. In Fall there will be boars that feed themselves on the mountain acorns and potatoes, nameko, large forest mushrooms, as well as Japanese peppers (sansho).

Describe how you welcome your customers?We believe in the term omotenashi, which means to wholeheartedly look after guests. I want guests to appreciate the nature around them that has helped them have this food, the history behind it.

You sometimes cook with bear meat? In Kyoto, it’s forbidden to hunt bears, but it’s permitted in Hyogo. So, I purchase the bear meat from Tamba-Sasayama, which is connected to Hanase via the Tamba mountain range.

You make your own chopsticks at the restaurant, don’t you? Yes, our chopsticks are made from chestnut tree branches. We’ll chop them down in December and then leave them to soak in water so the foam is extracted. When the wood has dried out we’ll cut it with the bark still on so they look wild and fit with the design of the restaurant.

Miyamasou has two Michelin stars – how did it feel when you were awarded those? I was so happy, but I also thought ‘I want three!’ So I’m going to work my way up to that.

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Nahoko Kojima, Age 36Paper-Cutting Artist

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BiographyNahoko was just five years old when her mother spotted her artistic talent and hired a private art teacher for her. He gave her an object to draw using only one line and then asked Nahoko to cut out the negative shapes. ‘I loved it straight away,’ says the artist, who grew up in Hyogo. ‘Paper cutting just lets me forget about everything.’ A lifelong passion was born.

The 36-year-old has since become one of the world’s foremost paper artists. Her intricate sculptures, which are largely inspired by nature, have been displayed at venues including the Saatchi Gallery in London, the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum in Michigan, USA, and the Beffroi in Paris. In 2015, she collaborated with fashion house Bulgari to create a 16-metre long piece, which was displayed in their flagship Tokyo store and also smaller art in over 100 displays across Asia.

Based from a studio in Bermondsey – she moved to London in 2005 – Nahoko has created critically acclaimed pieces such as a sculpture of a 3m x 3m swimming polar bear, which was suspended in the Jerwood Space in London. Before cutting the paper, she crumpled it by hand to give it an uneven texture. In 2012, her Cloud Leopard piece was displayed at the Saatchi gallery. She’s also created wearable art – paper dresses – in her HUMAN Collection 2018.

Nahoko’s unique style of art requires incredible patience – each piece is crafted from a single sheet of Japanese washi paper (a traditional Japanese paper made from bark from Gampi trees). If she makes one tiny mistake she has to start the whole process again. Throughout the process, she changes blades every three minutes to ensure that the cuts she makes are sharp and precise.

InterviewHow did you start paper cutting at such a young age?I was always drawing and painting at school and one day the teacher gave

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me a sheet of paper and told me to draw a line on it and cut that out. That was the first piece I did -I still have that now. My teacher spotted that I might have a talent. I was inspired by nature and I found a freedom of expression through Kirie (paper cutting). We are taught paper cutting at school in Japan, but not that often, and was something that I kept up in my spare time.

Why did you love paper cutting so much? I enjoyed the process of cutting paper because I found it very rewarding to make my own art. In the beginning, I was very surprised because as a child you get used to freedom in creative expression and even in the use of color for example, but with paper cutting, there was only one sheet. Deciding what to keep is an entirely different challenge to what I was used to at that age.

Did you devote a lot of time to paper-cutting at this young age?When I was a child I spent around 5-10 hours a week practicing paper cutting. At that age there are lots of sweets and games involved in the process, not just cutting.

Can you explain what ‘Kirie’ is?Kirie simply translates as cut-picture in English. Different traditions have their own styles and processes but for Japanese Kirie, a single sheet is used without the use of any adhesives.

Actually, if you look at my work, it still adheres to all the existing rules of Kirie and even with all the intertwined stories within the design, the contemporary style, harmony of light and shadow, the positive and negative. My creations are simply single sheets of very normal washi paper – made in the same way, by hand for centuries.

Do you think paper cutting could die out as a hobby and art form? Of course, paper cutting could disappear as an art form in a professional context at least. But it really depends on how many people like me follow the discipline professionally, not just as a hobby. For that reason, it’s important to me to encourage other young people to discover the beauty of paper cutting.

Is there a continued interest in this art form? I have a paper-cutting community on Facebook, the largest of its kind actually, and I also occasionally run workshops when my schedule allows, in order to engage budding artists.

What made you decide to pursue paper-cutting professionally, rather than as a hobby? It’s not an easy task and especially early on in my career there was no real support from society as a whole for me to follow my dreams. It was a career choice and many simply saw me as having fun, living a carefree life because of some privileged background. I could have become anything

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I wanted in my life. I excel in art, am pitch perfect, excel in design and mathematics for example, but the choice I made was one of love for this discipline, not just the box that my abilities pointed me to. I worked extremely hard to have reached this level where I can live professionally as an artist – it was like climbing a mountain.

Do you see yourself as a Takumi? If so, at which point would you say you became a Takumi?Yes, I do see myself as a Takumi, or a master of my craft. For me my turning point came when I had cut so many 2D artworks that I decided to pioneer my own processes, introducing three dimensionality and giving something back to the genre by treating paper cut as sculpture.

Being a Takumi does not simply mean repeating something for a certain period in order to become a master technician because that would imply that blind repetition can turn anyone into a Takumi. The essence of Takumi is to gain a sublime understanding of the nuances of a particular art through a body of experience and introspection. It’s the point at which you go beyond thinking about how to make something and start doing it without thinking at all. It requires one to empty the mind and focus in a way that is simply not possible when one is still acquiring a skill.

How do you go about cutting a large, single sheet of washi paper?Once I have my research and design drawn, I make hard copies of that art and use those as a guide on top of the washi to cut out the final art. I make smaller prototypes first, about the size of an A4 sheet of paper, but even those won’t bend and move in the same way as a larger piece. It’s important to cut the detail first and from the inner parts, then work outwards. With very large pieces space becomes a challenge because I have to climb on top of the table to cut the paper – so the work becomes physically challenging too.

What happens if you make a mistake while cutting a piece?I have to go back to the beginning – even if months into a project. But I try to really take care of the paper and avoid making mistakes, I’ve only done that once, when I’d been working on the sculpture for three months, and I had to start again. I just had to accept that I needed to start again and not get upset about it.

How does nature inspire your work? My inspiration comes from spending time in nature, with my animal subjects, studying and sketching their mannerisms and style of living [Nahoko often goes to London Zoo to look at the animals there]. I like to look at little details that perhaps point to something very meaningful or even funny or something charming. Every time I go to the park, it looks different. There is beauty everywhere but often people don’t notice – every color of a leaf, birds laying eggs, everything inspires me.

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Beauty is a reoccurring theme in my work. It is popular for contemporary artists to reference topical or political issues but that never interested me. My focus is on timelessness and a much wider, more spiritual view of the life in everything. 

What’s the most challenging part of your job? The hardest part of being an artist is having to compromise one’s vision.

How long do you spend working on your art every day?Usually eight hours, but I’m always thinking of ideas. Sometime it’s easier to concentrate and I just continue working – I’ve worked for 16 hours in a day before. But other times, if I’m less able to focus, I get out and go for a walk in a park and look around at nature. I get a lot of my inspiration from nature – just the color of a leaf can inspire me. It changes every day – there’s beauty everywhere and many people don’t notice it.

What sort of financial value do you put on your sculptures? My displayed works are usually insured and by way of example, Honey (2015), a small 60cm 3D sculpture, shown at the Holburne Museum in Bath was appraised to a value of £35k. I have lots of very reasonably priced pieces on my website also which are framed 2D pieces but most of those are sold and from my early works. The sculptures are a conceptual development, not really made with the intention of selling to a particular market. That motive would ruin the pieces actually.

What has been your biggest sculpture?My recent work, Shiro, a life-sized Blue Whale is my biggest piece yet. One of the rules of Japanese Kirie (Paper Cut) is to use only a single sheet of paper to cut the form and with this piece it was exceptionally difficult because it totals over 150 square meters in size. It was the most complex install of my career and a piece that was extremely popular when it was unveiled in Bangkok earlier this year.

What’s it like when you see a finished piece displayed?When my work is on display, I feel like it is a part of me. Each piece for me is like a happy journey.

You've worked with Bulgari. How did this commission come about? Bulgari Rome called my studio and invited me to pitch against two other international paper cut artists. I presented an extensive proposal and costing, and even built a prototype which was presented in Rome. After months of hard work, I gained unanimous approval and was awarded the contract to install my concept in all key locations across Asia and China – creating more than 100 displays. I also cut the 16 meter piece in the Bulgari Ginza flagship store by hand.

How did you get the sculpture to fit in the Bulgari windows?

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The Bulgari windows proved to be a big challenge because of a number of limitations in the structures, and a range of different designs in different stores. My company Solo Kojima drafted all the architectural plans, based on my artistic leadership, working with the Bulgari Rome design team. We set up a Tokyo office to service the region for the duration of the campaign and had a team working on various aspects from project management to art assistants. We oversaw everything and installed the giant art in person in all the locations.

Could you see your work combining with more wearable fashion? Yes, I think my most recent 'Human Collection’ is a blueprint for concepting designs from a different set of initial rules. For example, I make designs for clothes using a single sheet and that results in a very different aesthetic when compared with traditional methods of sewing and pattern making.

Are there fashion designers you admire?I love the work of Yohji Yamamoto because I think my process is very similar to his. He does not just use a set pattern but actually changes designs based on empirical thought. He has an idea running through his designs, in the same way I do.

How do you see Japanese culture influencing western culture and vice versa in recent years? Japan has been hugely influenced by western culture since it became more open and I find that instead of just copying, the Japanese have a remarkable ability of taking and refining and even improving on external ideas and processes. Japanese aesthetics and thoughts are much loved across the world and in recent years in London I think there is something of boom underway. You can see it in the increase in Japanese ramen bars, restaurants, technology and also creative ideas in design and fashion. 

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Katsuaki Suganuma, Age 51Inspection Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant

With 32 years of experience under his belt, Katsuaki Suganuma is the Takumi in charge of final inspection of vehicles before they leave the plant. A Lexus car is not just an industrial product in his eyes. ‘It’s a work of art,’ he says.

Katsuaki’s staff are trained to detect problems in vehicles using their human senses – something which he believes can never be truly replaced by technology. They’ll inspect painted surfaces and use their hands and eyes to check for gaps in the bonnet and boot.

Katsuaki is also responsible for training and overseeing test drives. Test driving is the final part of the inspection process with drivers completing approximately 200 hours of driving before they’re considered qualified. They’ll drive on many sorts of roads in order to hone their senses to detect errors. Inspecting hundreds of cars a week sounds repetitive – and it is – but for Takumi like Katsuaki, it’s all part of striving to be the best. He’s confident that humans will always be needed in the car manufacturing industry. ‘It’s about how a car feels when you touch it, or the experience of sitting inside it – robots won’t be able to replicate that,’ he says.

Interview

When you’re inspecting a vehicle, what are you looking out for?Every car has to be perfect, so we’re looking for the rare slight abnormalities that an untrained eye might miss.

When you started work in the inspection department 32 years ago, did you know you’d be here for a long time?

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Yes, I knew it would be a lifelong job. Ever since I’ve joined, I’ve worked with really good sempai [older, more experienced members of staff] and they taught me so much about this business. I think it’s wonderful that this factory has a policy of handing on knowledge to other people. I’ve always really appreciated that, which is why I’ve stayed here so long.

How did you feel when you were told you’d been made a Takumi?To be honest, at the time I thought, ‘Are you sure it can be me?’. But then I thought that if I’m in charge of this big role, I have to take full responsibility of what we call the Lexus quality. People describe me as a Takumi, but I feel that I’m still learning. I think rather than saying, ‘I’m a Takumi’, it’s more about other people recognizing you as that.

How many people would inspect one car?We have different workers undertaking different processes, but right now we have about 60 people inspecting one car. In addition to this, sampling inspection is then undertaken, where a car could be checked by an additional four staff in the space of an hour.

You train by going on lots of practice drives..Yes, test driving is the very final part of the inspection process. To guarantee absolute perfection, every single Lexus is test driven before it leaves the factory – and these test drives are carried out by certified inspection test drivers. To become a test driver, we practice driving for about 200 hours (or 2000 laps) over many different types of roads in order to hone our senses. We need to be very focused and aware of what we’re doing, so it’s always about repetition.

How do you cope with the repetitive nature of this work?It can be a very repetitive routine, but I just remember that we have an end goal, that we’re working towards creating a vehicle for someone. Whenever I see a Lexus car in the city, for example, I want to know what kind of person is driving it. If the car is one that’s been made at the Tahara factory then I feel proud, and I like to see that the customer looks happy.

How has technology had an impact on the way you work?We don’t bring that much technology into inspection. It’s all about our highly tuned human senses. We always need a human sense of sight, hearing and touch to properly inspect a vehicle.

How do you think technological advances will change your industry in the future?We all say that we’re at the biggest point of transformation in 100 years. Part of that will be AI.

You’re at the final part of the process before the car leaves the factory to be sold. What challenges does this bring up?

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A real Takumi would have the experience to spot any type of problem with a car. If I notice there’s something wrong with a particular part of a vehicle when it’s assembled, I may go and speak to the body assembly division or the painting division, and we co-operate so that they’re able to make any adjustments.

The staff on the factory floor seem very focused…We’re all concentrating so much inspection that we don’t talk to each other. There are times when we do talk, when we spot something that’s wrong with the car and want somebody else’s judgment. But while we don’t talk in the workplace, we go out together at weekends. That’s when we go out and get to know each other. You need to form strong bonds to work together so closely.

Everything here seems to run incredibly precisely. Is anyone ever late?We’re human beings so there are times when we do come in late, of course. I’ve been late to work once in 32 years.

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APPENDIX

Hideya Kojima, Age 51Engine Assembly Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant

It takes about nine hours for an engine to be processed from one side of the Tahara plant assembly line to another. Leading that process is Takumi Hideya Kojima. He oversees a team of 80, who can be working on 60 engines at the same time at a rate of 420 seconds per engine (the number of team members and production volume fluctuates depending on demand). Each engine weighs approximately 300kg.

Hideya, who has spent 31 years at the Tahara plant, has to make sure his staff are equipped to recognize potential problems such as leakage of water or petrol. Engines are also revved to test them. Staff will also listen to different sections of the engine as they walk around the vehicle (this is done as a spot check, not to every engine). If they find any abnormalities, they will check the sound further by using a stethoscope.

Of course, technology also plays its part. A finished engine is connected to a computer to test for horsepower, torque and responses.

Interview

Why is human expertise still needed in the assembly process?Machines and robots are incredibly useful, but there are still things that cannot be done by a machine. A machine will only give you yes or no answers, but with our human senses we can look at what we call the

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borderline between yes and no. Humans with our senses – our eyes, ears and hands – can pick up more delicate things than a robot or machine.

How do you think developing technologies will impact your work in the future?AI is one of the biggest developments of recent years. Lexus unveiled its automated-driving-capable "LS+ Concept" concept vehicle at the Tokyo Motor Show in 2017, and if self-driving vehicles develop further, of course that will have an impact on how engines are made.

How do you manage to process so many engines in a day?We determine how many cars we need to make in a day, then we break that down into hours, and right now we spend about 420 seconds per car engine, that’s about 80 people working on engines in one day. It’s 80 people per engine because they work on different parts.

What would you say it takes to become a Takumi?At Lexus, the word Takumi refers to the level of your job so to be a Takumi you have to reach a certain managerial level and your bosses and managers have to recommend and acknowledge you. I think all of us Takumi have different types of experiences, but it’s about being recognized for your work and your experience.

Takumi often pass their skills on from generation to generation of the same family. Do you have family members in the same industry?Yes, both my sons work here at the same Tahara plant. I was kind of hesitant about my sons coming to work here. I thought it would put them under pressure because their father works here. At the same time, I was worried about what would happen if there were any problems. I didn’t want them to work in the same company as me, but now I realize that it’s a big, wonderful company and I have peace of mind that they’re working somewhere like this.

Why have you stayed for so long at one company? I’ve never even considered working anywhere else, I’ve been at the Tahara plant for 32 years. In my current role, I manage the staff who are involved in the engine assembly process and educate the next generation, so they can gain the necessary skills. When did your interest in cars start?I grew up in an area close to our plant at Tahara. Our house was next to a highway and when I was child, I would watch all these cars zoom along the highway. I would go and watch cars whenever I could. Also, my father was a truck driver and sometimes he’d let me go with him, so I have fond memories of cars.

What do you think makes Japanese cars so special?I think in Japan, we excel at car making because we tend to be meticulous and considerate of the smaller details. I think these skills contribute to good

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engine making and we create cars that rarely break down. It does feel special to realize that our cars are loved around the world.

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Osamu Tanaka, Age 56Paint Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant

Painting a car comes with its challenges – the coats of paint must be even whether they’re on the bonnet of the car or the curved body parts.

Takumi Osamu Tanaka, who has worked at Tahara for 34 years, has an eye for perfection. He oversees the paint shop processes and his staff are trained to spot even the tiniest abnormality. While robots have taken on much of the painting tasks, there are still some parts of the cars that are painted by hand, such as the intricate parts inside the car where it is difficult for robots to paint.

Robots have been programmed to mimic human hands polishing and painting a vehicle. And the body of the vehicle is polished while water is being showered on it – this helps create even more of a glossy sheen.

The paint color must be one that shines beautifully whether it’s in bright sunlight or the shade of night. Designers often create clay models of vehicles to test the paint on them before production.

Interview

What made you want to work in the car industry?When I was at primary school, we were taken on a trip to the Tsutsumi factory and I remember seeing the Toyota Celica [produced by Toyota from 1970 to 2006] and thinking I would love to have a job creating cool cars like that. I’ve been in this job for 34 years and I still love it.

What do you enjoy most about your job? As the Lexus Takumi or master craftsman, what I enjoy most is on the factory side, where I see so many people working together to create a car. Even

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though we’re involved in making several hundred cars per day, we know that a customer is likely to receive one of these and for them that car will be very special. The best bit about my job is paying compliments to our workers. And so, it’s my job to encourage people to work very hard but in a comfortable, pleasant manner.

Robots have been programmed to mimic the movements of hands when water polishing the car. How does this work?Water polishing is an important stage, which happens immediately before painting. This unique process involves the body of the car being polished while water is simultaneously poured onto the vehicle. Only highly skilled craftsmen can carry out the precise movements needed to create the gleaming surface. So, the robots that perform this task are trained to mimic the strokes and movement of the craftsmen. Water polishing makes the surface of the body completely smooth, which prevents tiny irregularities in the paint work. The result is the beautiful shine, luster and depth of color.

What did it mean to you to be told you were a Takumi?When I was told that I was a Lexus master craftsman (Takumi), I knew it was the pinnacle of my career. At the same time, I started to get a sense of the huge responsibility, and what was needed to motivate our workers. I have to pass on the skills and knowledge that I have gained, and encourage our workers to learn more about technologies and techniques that apply to each and every car.

To reach a Takumi level, it requires hours of carrying out the same tasks. How do you keep motivated on your way to becoming a Takumi?I think your mind learns to adapt to the focus and repetitive aspects.

Why do you think humans will still be needed when robots will gradually do more and more?As humans, we always want to explore more. So, if we get a robot to do one task, a human will always want to better that. And customers’ needs are always changing so we’re going to have to keep developing technology to meet that. It’s never ending.

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Katsumi Kobayashi, Age 53Assembly Takumi at Lexus’ Tahara Plant

There’s no room for error in the assembly plant. To put an engine into a Lexus vehicle requires two people working in perfect synchronization – one is on the right side and one is on the left. It’s a process they’ve practiced repeatedly for hours to ensure that there are no wasted movements.

It requires 350 tasks to assemble one vehicle, and Katsumi Kobayashai oversees a team of 350-700 who build between 250 and 500 cars per day (number of team members and production volume fluctuates depending on demand).

Katsumi has been at the Tahara plant for 33 years, working solely in the assembly plant, and he’s passing on his skills to others. While technology has transformed his industry, Katsumi is an example of why humans are still needed in car production. The workers use their senses of sight and hearing to decide on optimal positioning – something that technology hasn’t been able to replicate perfectly just yet.

He has seen big changes since he started, however, particularly in the types of materials used. Car door trims are made with the stem of kenaf, a member of the hibiscus family, rather than the woodchips previously used. Kenaf absorbs between two and five times as much CO2 than other plants and is mixed with old waste bumpers from car repair shops to make the door trims lighter, with better sound-proofing and using material that doesn’t deplete forests. Lexus have developed infinitely recyclable material, and the Tahara plant is focused on zero waste.

Interview

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You’ve been working in the assembly plant for 33 years. What have been the biggest technological and automation changes you’ve seen since you started? When I first joined, automation was already beginning, and we did have robots. But technologies or facilities designed with ergonomics are constantly advancing, making it more efficient and comfortable for workers. For example, in order to make assembly easier and efficient, some parts, such as the doors, are assembled separately, and then attached to the body later. Heavy lifting work such as installing the front seats, attaching the tires, or carrying the exhaust pipes are now done by robots or supported by machines, which makes these processes much simpler for humans.

When you started, did you think you’d be here 33 years later?Yes, it’s a job for life. I graduated high school and I loved automobiles so much I wanted to come and work here.

Some of the tasks are conducted in pairs. How do you work in such synchronization?We need two people working seamlessly together, attaching the bumper, engine, rear suspension and front and rear windows. We practice a lot – I think we spend double the time practicing than we spend on the process.

What’s the atmosphere like in the factory?There is no talking at all. We all need to concentrate on creating the perfect vehicle.

What does it take to become a Takumi? I think that to become a Takumi, it needs about 30 years of experience. In addition to this, at Lexus, in order to become a Takumi you have to be selected by the factory head and managers. So, they have to recommend you, and everyone has to agree that you can become a Takumi.

What do you like most about your job? Whenever I’m outside in the city or somewhere and I see someone driving a Lexus, I think, ‘Okay, the parts we assembled are working well’. I feel pride when I see someone in one of our cars.

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Additional Experts

Nora Atkinson

Nora Atkinson is a prominent American expert on craft, with a specific focus on the role and importance of handmade in modern culture. Her current role is a Curator of Craft at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington DC. She was recently named Washingtonian Magazine’s 2018 “Best Boundary-Pushing Curator” for her work on a number of critically-acclaimed shows.

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Earlier this year Atkinson spoke at TED event called ‘The Age of Amazement’ - a future focused event exploring AI and new forms of creativity and social change. We have filmed Atkinson in Washington. Her commentary was about craft in general and its role in the digitalage. Importantly for us, she linked craft to luxury in terms of real handmade objects and their value in the future.

Martin Ford

Martin Ford is a futurist and author focusing on the impact of artificial intelligence and robotics on society and the economy. He will act as an opposing point of view on AI progression and provide us with a contrasting narrative to our other experts. He has written two books on technology. His most recent book, Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future (2015), was a New York Times bestseller and won the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award in 2015.Martin’s TED Talk on ‘How AI could cause job loss’ discusses the dichotomy between the negative effect on industries that AI could have, versus the undeniable progress it can cause and the new industries it could inspire. He has a loyal following on Twitter, with 42.3k followers and had actively engaged in the discussion on Japan and Technology, tweeting on the 31st of July about ‘Why Westerners Fear Robots and the Japanese do not’.

Jon Bruner

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Jon Bruner is a journalist and programmer who runs the Digital Factory program at Formlabs, a company that builds professional-grade 3D printers. Before joining Formlabs, he oversaw publications on data, artificial intelligence, hardware, the Internet of Things, manufacturing, and electronics, and was program chair, along with Joi Ito, focused on the intersection between software and the physical world. He is a prolific contributor online with articles such as ‘Making AI Transparent’ and ‘Integrating Data with AI’ where he talks about the relationship between ‘human experts’ and algorithms. Jon has been interviewed by The Economist’s own Podcast on the subject of the ability of machine to mimic man. He asks if ‘computers can create beautiful music, can 3D printers adopt traditional techniques to give us reinforced floors?’ In fascinating contrast to Martina Ford, Jon Bruner is an optimist. He’s the kind of futurist who is excited about the opportunities that are opened to humans when AI replaces certain tasks and jobs. He speaks to the beauty of the man working side-by-side with a machine.

NarratorNeil Macgregor

Neil is a highly regarded expert in the history of humankind, having been director of the National Gallery and British Museum for many years, and now as a director of the soon to open Humbolt Forum in Berlin (Germany’s answer

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to The Met). Neil has used the lens of human made objects and craft, to tell the history of the world. His bestselling book, exhibition and podcast – A History of the World in 100 Objects, is his most famous work in this area. He is a globally renowned expert in this field and a highly respected author and broadcaster.

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